The Turning Point
by cmar
Summary: Two years after leaving for Florida, Kim returns to Angel Grove with Tommy on her mind - but The Power is ready to help her realize other possibilities.
1. Prologue

Power Rangers belongs to Disney/Saban. I am using the characters without permission, but I am not and don't expect to make money from this.

Rated PG: a little minor language, some mature situations. Brief discussion of abortion in a later chapter.

This fits the 'Five Things that Never Happened' fanfiction challenge/exercise - call it 'Five Men Kim Never Married.' Not your usual Tommy/Kim, so be warned if you're a T/K fan!

Kindly take a moment to review...

* * *

**The Turning Point**

Prologue

_Dear Kim, _

_Hi, Beautiful. How's everything in sunny Florida? We're about the same here, I guess. Another week, another monster, ha-ha. Kat's doing a great job and she's fitting in with the gang really well, don't worry about that - but she's not you and we all miss you. _

_As for me, I'm about the same too: trying to keep up with karate, school, and our extracurricular activities, with about as much success as usual. I'm glad summer is coming up and at least I won't have classes to worry about. It won't be much of a break for you, will it? How's training going? Hope you're working hard, but not too hard, and finding a little time to have fun. _

_Man, writing letters is hard! I can't think of anything else except the mushy stuff, so here goes. Do I even need to say I miss you every minute of every day? Well, I do. Maybe it's selfish but I hope you miss me too, just a little. _

_Thinking of you with lots of love, _

_Tommy _

The sloppy handwriting on the sheet of paper Kim held blurred as her eyes filled with tears, but she didn't need to see it; she'd read the words so many times they felt engraved in her heart. It was Tommy's first letter after she had left Angel Grove to train for the Pan Globals. Not the last, but he had never been much for writing. No, it had been mostly phone calls, but you couldn't hold a phone call in your hand years later and go over every word, wishing all the time that things had turned out differently.

Her own fault, of course. Maybe it was too late, but she'd never know unless she tried to put that mistake right. Pausing for only a moment to wipe her eyes, Kim carefully folded the two-year-old letter and slipped it into a drawer in the nightstand. She stood and closed her now-empty suitcase, picked it up and stashed it in the back of a closet in the small hotel room. With the chore of unpacking done, Kim glanced at the TV and decided against it. Instead, she stepped to the window and pulled the curtain aside, looking out over the city where she had grown up.

It was a nice view from this top-floor room, high enough to see the bright lights of Angel Grove at night, but her eyes quickly searched for and found a dark corner of the park where she and her friends had spent so much time both relaxing and fighting so many of their battles against Rita's monsters. It was only a small handful of years ago, yet it felt like a lifetime, especially now that the Power Chamber was gone. Once she and her friends would have been the ones carrying on the battle despite such a setback, but now a new team was in place. Her own career as a Ranger belonged to the past, so distant from her life now that it felt as if it had happened to a different person.

Maybe it had; the Kim Hart of then had been a high school girl, thrilled with the Power, immersed in gymnastics, newly in love. The Kimberly of now was a woman, in college, starting to think about the future. The rest of her life. A life that most certainly would not include Mr. Wyatt Williams, the man she had so stupidly dumped poor Tommy for.

Kim took a deep breath and let it out. She was still in touch with Jason, who had kept her informed of events in Angel Grove. She knew Kat and Tommy had dated for a few months, but she also knew they had put their relationship on hold after Katherine had left for a semester in London. With a twinge of guilt Kim wondered if the memory of what had happened the last time his girlfriend had gone away had discouraged Tommy from another long-distance relationship. At any rate, as far as she was concerned Tommy was unattached, and now might be the perfect time - her exams had ended early and she had left school right away; surely Kat wouldn't have been able to return from London this early. Kim shrugged off another guilty twinge. Tommy had been _her_ boyfriend first, after all. It had been Kat's decision to leave and whatever happened would be her own fault.

Jason had had other news - their old hangout, the Youth Center and Juice Bar, had been sold, and the new owner was closing it for remodeling. Tomorrow would be its last day in business, and Tommy and the others wouldn't miss that for the world. He'd be sure to be there, and Kim would have every reason to be there too. The one time they had met after the breakup he'd been friendly, no reason he wouldn't be now - they'd both been with other people then, but now - with Kat hopefully out of the picture and with Wyatt left behind in Florida, things would be different. A lot different.

Tomorrow morning - it would be then, she was sure, with the strangest, strongest feeling something important was about to happen and that it would change the rest of her life. For now, it was late and she was tired from the flight; best to try for a good night's sleep, get a head start on beating jet lag, and be fresh and alert for Tommy. Kim turned back into the room, intending to grab a nightgown and get ready for bed - and she gasped, starting violently, heart leaping into her throat.

Her eyes took a second to process what she saw in the middle of the room, which had been empty just a second ago - a woman in a flowing white robe, the lower half of her face covered by a white veil. Just standing and looking at her, but-

"Who the hell are _you_?" Kim exclaimed, instinctively taking a defensive position with fists up. "How did you get in here?" She looked around, half-expecting the woman to have reinforcements.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" the woman exclaimed. "I thought this form would be reassuring to you, but I forgot you never met Dimitria. Is this better?"

This time Kim couldn't help a startled cry as the woman's form blurred and shimmered, solidifying again as a thick vertical tube in which a familiar face floated. _"Zordon??"_ she gasped.

"Oops, my mistake again," 'Zordon' said. He blurred once more and resolidified as a short red and gold metallic figure, continuing in Alpha's high-pitched voice, "Sorry about that; it's in rather poor taste to take Zordon's form just now, isn't it? How's this? Familiar, non-threatening..."

Kim's fear had ebbed a little, only to be replaced by anger. "How did you get in here?" she demanded hotly. "And who are you? Answer me!"

"I will, if you'll kindly stop shouting," 'Alpha' said in a reasonable tone.

"Well?"

"Okay." He paused, tilting his head thoughtfully. "How to put this? I'm your fairy godmother. Or maybe guardian angel? I guess that's close enough."

Kim lowered her fists just a little. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Tsk, language. Is that what you're learning in college, how to swear?"

"Oh, I can swear a lot better than that. And I will, not to mention kicking your butt, if you don't explain yourself!"

"So violent. Is this the legacy the Power has left you?" 'Alpha' asked mournfully. "Well, you Rangers are never the passive type, are you? I suppose you wouldn't be much use if you were. Anyway, explanations. I'm a manifestation of the protective forces of the Power."

Kim squinted at him, baffled, and lowered her guard a little more. "A what of the what?" she asked.

"Manifestation: a manifest indication of the existence or presence or nature of some person or thing, or, as in this case, an appearance in bodily form-"

"I know what the words mean," Kim snapped. "What I don't understand is what exactly you're talking about!"

"I'm... I'm..." Alpha gestured helplessly. "I'm a part of the Power Zordon gave all of you when he made you Rangers. It's more than coins or crystals or morphers or (spirits defend us) cell phones, it's a benevolent force of Nature with many aspects. I am one of those aspects, a living, thinking part of the Power, an embodiment of what you call the Morphing Grid, appearing as the being before you. When Zordon said 'May the Power protect you' it was more than mere words. It did. It still does."

Kim stared, confused by several parts of that speech, and started with: "Cell phones?"

'Alpha' rolled his head, a gesture uncannily suggestive of a human eye-roll. "Forgot when I am again. Not yet, but soon."

"Um... Okay. But why me? I'm not a Ranger anymore."

"It doesn't matter. Once a Ranger, always - well, you know. As a former bearer of the Power you still deserve its protection, and even its guidance when needed."

Kim blinked. "So does that mean I'm in danger?"

"Not in the way you're thinking."

"So - how?" Kim asked when Alpha didn't continue.

"Every life contains turning points. Tomorrow morning is one for you. An important one, with repercussions that will affect the rest of your life."

That sounded ominous - but on the other hand, it could be encouraging. What else could a 'turning point' mean than a chance to get back together with Tommy? But... "Why now?" Kim asked. "I mean, I came here to see Tommy Oliver - he was the Green Ranger, and then White, and Red-"

"I know who he is, and I know your intentions."

Kim raised her chin. "If you're trying to stop me, it won't work."

Alpha crossed his arms. "The decisions are yours; all I try to do is open your eyes to the possibilities, to help you to make the best choices on your own."

"Oh, yeah?" Kim frowned and took a couple of steps to a chair, keeping a cautious eye on 'Alpha' as she sat down. "Where were you when I started going out with Wyatt in Florida? When I fell for the jerk, and when I broke up with Tommy in that letter? Why didn't you 'open my eyes' then and keep me from making the biggest mistake of my life?"

"Why now and not at any other time which seems to have as much importance?" Alpha paused, his hand moving in a sweeping gesture in the air. "Because this is a nexus for you, Kimberly. Many possible futures are open before you. At this moment, you think only one will make you happy. Perhaps it will, and perhaps not. Perhaps it's the best choice, or perhaps the worst. You must not think it's the only one."

"Are you trying to tell me I'm not... well, destined to be with Tommy?"

Alpha's chuckle had a tinny ring. "You mortals and your notions of destiny, especially when it comes to love. Destiny is not fixed, certainly not at a crossroads like this one. You cared very much for Tommy, and still do, but he's not the only man you have the ability to love. No offense, but you're not the only woman he could find happiness with, either."

Kim shook her head stubbornly. "No, I don't believe that. Tommy and I are meant to be together. We're soulmates."

"And is he the only possible soulmate for you? Will you shut out other choices, other good men, as you've shut out Wyatt?"

"Wyatt is a loser. And _I'm_ not the one who shut _him_ out." Kim glared into Alpha's metal 'face'. "I don't care what you say. Tommy's the one. The only one."

"Stubborn, very stubborn. I see I'll have to show you."

"What do you mean?" she asked suspiciously.

"Come." Alpha held out a hand, apparently to help her up from her chair.

Kim hesitated, but if 'Alpha' meant her harm surely he would have made his move by now. She didn't exactly trust him - not quite - but she raised her hand cautiously and let him touch her fingertips with his own. A tingle spread from the contact, thrilling down her arm, making her gasp, and for a moment she was afraid again, for a moment she tried to pull back, but it was too late as a whirlwind of darkness shot with slivers of light swept her away into a dizzy vortex.

Only to open her eyes into bright sunlight and the murmur of voices from a few small groups of passers-by on the sidewalk near a familiar doorway. Kim found herself standing now and staggered unsteadily before catching her balance and looking around.

"The Juice Bar?" she exclaimed. "What happened - how did we get here? And it was night a second ago!"

"The Power has many abilities. Observe."

He pointed at a petite brunette who was walking towards them, alone. She reached the walkway leading to the door and paused, looking up, then around, not seeming to see them, fidgeting uncertainly.

"That's me!" Kim exclaimed. "But how...?"

"Many abilities, remember?" Alpha almost seemed to be smiling as he pointed at the other Kim again. "This is indeed you tomorrow morning, but a version of Kimberly Hart who did not get a visit from me in your hotel room. I'm showing you one of the directions your life could take after this pivotal moment, if you can open your mind to the possibilities. Watch; your future - or rather, one possible future - approaches."

- - -

To be continued...


	2. Intellect

Power Rangers belongs to Disney/Saban. I am using the characters without permission, but I am not and don't expect to make money from this.

Rated PG: a little minor language, some mature situations. Brief discussion of abortion in a later chapter.

Kindly take a moment to review...

* * *

Intellect

Angel Grove, 9:20 am

It was a very odd feeling to be watching another version of herself, not least because Kim knew exactly what other-Kim was thinking. She would be nervous, wondering if Tommy was inside, half-hopeful, half-fearful, wondering what his reaction would be. Tempted to put it off to another time, another day.

"Can she see us?" Kim asked.

"No. No one can see, hear, or touch us," Alpha said softly. "Kind of like A Christmas Carol, they're just shades of what might be. I love that movie. Come to think of it, this is a little like It's a Wonderful Life, too. Great movie, even if it's a little disturbing to see that nice Jimmy Stewart running around acting like a crazy man. Not to mention how Donna Reed being an 'old maid' suddenly made her wear frumpy clothes and need glasses-"

"As usual, I don't have the slightest idea what you're talking about," Kim grumbled. "Quiet, she's - I'm - about to go in."

"Not yet. Watch."

Kim followed his gaze and blinked in surprise. "What's _he_ doing here?" she exclaimed.

"You're - or your other self is - about to find out."

* * *

"Kim! Hey, Kim, wait up!"

She had been about to start for the door when the voice - familiar, yet completely unexpected - pulled her back. Kim turned to see a young man with blond hair grinning at her as he approached at a trot, and took a few steps to meet him. "Billy?" she gasped. "What are you doing back here on Earth?"

He shrugged, grin fading a little. "Well... things didn't work out for me long term on Aquitar, so I decided to come home. Just got here a few days ago, haven't seen any of the other guys yet. How are you? I thought you were living in Florida?"

Kim shrugged, not letting her own smile slip. "I'm visiting for the holidays. Thought I'd look up some of the old crowd here."

"Me too. Never thought the first one I'd see would be you!"

"Yeah, me either. Hey, I haven't even said welcome back home! It's so great to see you!" Kim stepped forward and pulled Billy into a tight hug, laughing as he lifted her off her feet and swung her around while enthusiastically returning the embrace.

"You too," he said after setting her down. "You look great!"

"So do you." He did, she realized - all the effects of the accelerated aging he had gone to Aquitar to cure seemed to be gone, and he looked strong and healthy. "Were you headed inside?" Kim gestured at the Juice Bar.

"Yes, but..." He ducked his head with an echo of the old, shy Billy. "Actually I haven't had breakfast yet, and I'd prefer something more nutritionally sound than a burger and fries. Uh - if you're hungry, would you like to go by the coffee shop first? My treat."

Kim glanced past him at the doorway behind which Tommy might be waiting - just in time to catch sight of a tall, slim, blonde young woman who was cutting across the grass to the door of the building. Kim watched, heart lurching, as she paused for a moment, took a deep breath, then pulled the door open and disappeared inside. She hadn't even noticed them.

Kat. She was back. Was she meeting Tommy? Were they together again? Either way - Kim's heart sank under the sudden certainty that she had no right to show up and interfere, that she had missed her chance, or maybe had never had one, that all her dreams of Tommy had been only that, dreams.

"Kim?"

Billy was looking at her expectantly. What had he said? Breakfast - she was no longer hungry, but she didn't want to tell him that, and certainly not why. She couldn't bring herself to go into the Juice Bar with Kat there, but she didn't want to trudge back to her lonely hotel room either, where she would have nothing to do but cry. Besides, Billy had just gotten home after so much time; she hadn't seen him in years; it would only be polite to spend a little time catching up.

"Okay. Sure, that sounds great!"

Billy's grin was so bright and so infectious that any doubts Kim felt at accepting his invitation disappeared in its warmth. He held out his elbow and she took his arm, and managed not to look back.

* * *

_"Is that what you brought me here to see?" Kimberly demanded. "That Kat and Tommy are getting back together and I've wasted my time coming to Angel Grove?"_

_"That's what it looks like, doesn't it?" Alpha answered. "But this is only one possible path for their futures as well as yours. Anyway, there are much more interesting things for you to see. Come."_

* * *

"The Power Chamber destroyed? It's hard to believe." Billy stared down at the plate of scrambled eggs he seemed to have lost interest in, and then reached for his water glass, perhaps to hide his reactions. "When did this happen?"

"Only a couple of weeks ago. That's when Jason told me. There was only a little about it in the news; no one but us knows what really happened." Kim remembered the shock she had felt at Jason's phone call, and looked at Billy sympathetically.

"Wish there was something we could have done."

"But there isn't, is there? We just have to hope T.J. and the others can handle it."

"They're Rangers; I'm sure they can." But he sounded more confident than he looked. "Well... What else have I missed? Has anyone heard from Zack or Trini?"

Kim smiled, glad of the change of subject. "Actually, yes. Jason's in touch with them too, and he said they're both still in Geneva, and they're dating now."

"Zack and Trini?" Billy's eyes widened.

"What's so surprising?" Kim paused for a sip of coffee. "They're both nice people."

"I didn't mean they aren't. It's just that, relative to Zack, Trini is much more intellectually inclined and of a more serious nature. I'm surprised she would be interested."

"There's a lot to be said for a sense of humor, and a sense of fun." Kim gave him an examining look. "You kind of liked Trini yourself, didn't you?"

"I was quite fond of her. We communicated well." Billy shrugged and put down his fork. "You're right, I confess to being disappointed when she decided to go to Switzerland, but apparently a romantic relationship between us was not meant to be."

"Billy..." Kim hesitated, but went on. "What happened on Aquitar? I mean with Cestria. If I'm prying or you don't want to talk about it, just-"

"No, no. I suppose I should talk about it, and there's no one I'd rather talk to than you."

Kim smiled, touched. "Thanks, Billy. That's sweet."

"As you know, I fell in love with Cestria and was willing to remain on Aquitar to be with her." Billy's mouth curved in a faint smile, his eyes wandering away from Kim's face. "The fact that she's not human, that her world is largely underwater - none of it seemed to matter. Our love was above such things, a meeting of the minds rather than of the bodies." He sighed. "That's what I thought at the time. Unfortunately I discovered I have the same physical - um - wants as anyone else. There were - problems. We're not the same species, and we don't - er - reproduce the same way."

"Oh," Kim said faintly. "You mean..."

"I'd rather not go into details."

"Of course."

"Maybe we could have worked things out, but that wasn't the only thing. So much of Aquitar is underwater, and I couldn't go anywhere without a respirator and an air tank. To them it was like I had a disability and was unable to survive without support. I imagine it was the way the Aquitian Rangers must have felt here on Earth when they became insufficiently hydrated. That wasn't all - everything was so different, so strange, and even though everyone was kind to me, I was an alien to them - I honestly thought I'd be able to adjust better than I did, but despite all my supposed intellect I couldn't escape from homesickness and the desire to see another human face and to hear a human voice-" Billy cut himself off, his fingers trembling slightly as he reached again for his glass of water.

"You weren't happy," Kim murmured sympathetically.

"On several levels. I did love Cestria, and still do, but she was the first to insist that I had to return to my home and my own people. For the same reasons I had difficulties on her world, she couldn't come to mine. So it ended."

"I'm sorry."

"Thanks." Billy reached out and touched her fingers briefly. "I'm glad you're here, Kim. You're one of the few people who can understand." As she smiled, he looked down at his plate and picked up his fork again, pushing at a piece of egg. "How about you? How are things in Florida? How's... sorry, I seem to have forgotten your new boyfriend's name. Not so new by now, actually."

Kim frowned, but honesty seemed only fair after Billy had confided so much. She couldn't tell him about Tommy; that would be too embarrassing and would only sound stupid - especially with the way she had behaved after leaving for Florida. "I can't imagine what all of you thought of me when I sent that letter to Tommy," she said very softly, her own gaze on her plate now.

"You and he were separated and you met someone else. It happens, especially to teenagers." To her relief there was a smile in Billy's voice.

"Like you're not still a teenager yourself."

"After being turned into a child and then almost dying from accelerated aging, I'm not so sure." Billy grinned when she laughed. "You were barely seventeen. Vastly different from the maturity of nineteen."

Kim couldn't help a smile. "If you say so."

Billy leaned his elbows on the table. "So how are things going with him?"

"His name is Wyatt." Kim shrugged uncomfortably. "Everything was great for a while. He seemed like a wonderful guy. After the Pan Globals I stayed in Florida to be with him, and after we graduated high school we went to the same college."

"Judging from your expression, something went wrong."

"You could say that."

"If you want to talk about it..."

"I know. Actually, you're one of the very few people who can understand, too." Kim sighed. "Some of it was kind of about you guys anyway. My friends here, and being a Ranger, were so important to me. I wanted to tell him everything about you, and I tried, but - it was hard when I couldn't say anything about the Ranger stuff that was such a big part of it. It felt like a wall between us, almost."

"Keeping secrets is never easy." Now Billy was the one looking sympathetic.

"Maybe it was because he didn't know about that - Wyatt just never got it. He couldn't understand how close we all were, and why, and I could never explain it. Sometimes he'd get that _look_ of 'Here she goes again' when I talked about you - well, especially about Tommy, I guess. Still, it wasn't really a problem until I decided I wanted to visit here for winter break."

"What happened?"

"Wyatt wanted me to spend Christmas and the break with him, at his parents' house. I had never met them, and he... well, I didn't want to. Maybe I wasn't ready to meet them, or to spend two weeks with people I don't know, or whatever. I wanted to come here, since my mom's in France and my dad's remarried and moved away and has a whole new family now. Wyatt couldn't understand that. He said he couldn't believe I'd choose people who were 'just friends' over him and meeting his parents. He said I cared more about my past than my future. He said..." _He said I still have a thing for Tommy._ Kim didn't say it aloud. "We had a huge fight and broke up right before I left."

"I'm sorry," Billy said.

"I'm not. Better to find out now what kind of person he really is." Kim lifted her chin. "I don't know if I'm even going back to Florida. I could apply to Angel Grove University."

"While I'm sure everyone would be very happy to have you back, it seems impetuous to leave your life in Florida behind because of one fight," Billy said. "No offense, I hope."

"None taken. I have some friends there, but without Wyatt..." Kim forced a smile. "I have better friends here. Besides, impulsive is my middle name, right?"

Billy returned the smile. "Right. All done? Let's get the check and go."

* * *

_"Wyatt said you still have a thing for Tommy?" Alpha said. "Can you imagine the nerve of that guy?"_

_"How did you know about that?" Kim demanded._

_"The Power has many-"_

_"Oh, be quiet."_

* * *

She heard his voice before she saw him - those well-remembered tones sending a shiver of nostalgia through her, the words indistinct until she turned her head and he saw her, and both stopped short in astonishment on the sidewalk outside the restaurant.

"Kim?" Tommy exclaimed. "Billy?"

He wasn't alone - at his side Kat broke into a delighted smile, although she cast a quick glance at Tommy first. "What a wonderful surprise!" she exclaimed.

"When did you... How did you..."

"I'm here for school break," Kim said, trying not to look at Kat's fingers lightly entwined in Tommy's. "Couldn't miss the Juice Bar's last day."

"Billy?" Kat asked. "Are you visiting from Aquitar?"

"No, back for good." Billy exchanged a glance with Kim. "It's a long story. I'll tell you guys later."

"Sure." Tommy grinned and stepped forward. "Hey, I haven't even said hello properly." He squeezed Kim in a brief hug and pumped Billy's hand. "Great to see you. Welcome back."

Kat was right behind him, hugging Kim first and then Billy. "It's so great to see both of you."

"So what's going on with you guys?" Billy asked as she stepped back. "Tommy, are you still into racing?"

"Only as a hobby. I'm going to Stone Canyon University," Tommy said. "It's not far from home and it's a good school."

"What are you studying?"

"Actually I'm thinking of majoring in paleontology."

"Paleontology?" both Billy and Kim exclaimed.

"Weird, huh? But I took a course last semester and kind of got hooked."

"How about you, Kat?" Billy asked.

"I went to London for a semester at the Royal Academy, but I'm glad to be back. I missed you guys." Again she glanced at Tommy, who smiled and took her hand. "So, where are you two headed?"

"Thought we'd go to the Juice Bar, have a last smoothie before it closes," Kim said.

"We just came from there," Tommy said. "We're going over to the high school, just to see the old place again. Want to come along?"

"Oh no," Kim said hastily. "Maybe after the Juice Bar."

"Okay. Jason left, but Rocky should still be there. Even Skull showed up, without Bulk."

"Did you say the Juice Bar is closing?" Billy said a few moments later.

Kim pulled herself away from wondering exactly how much affection had been in Tommy's greeting and blinked at him. "Uh, yes. I heard Lt. Stone sold it. The new owner's going to reopen under a different name."

He hunched his shoulders. "The Power Chamber - the Juice Bar. It's like the end of an era. Kind of sad."

Kim felt a shiver down her spine. She hadn't really thought about it before, but it was a final ending to an important part of her life. How many hours had she spent in the Power Chamber? How many at the Youth Center Gym and Juice Bar? How many of the important events of her life had occurred in those two places? The destruction of the Power Chamber had shocked her, but suddenly the closing of the Juice Bar seemed like saying goodbye to an old friend, as sad as saying goodbye to her hopes of being with Tommy again. "Yes, sad," she said in a subdued voice. "It's really the end of that whole part of our lives."

"Hey..." Billy turned to face her. "Didn't mean to depress you. Remember, every ending means a beginning."

"I guess you're right."

"Come on, we'll go find Jason and Rocky, hang out, have a few smoothies. Just like old times."

"Yeah, just like old times."

Billy's obvious effort to cheer her up almost worked, or at least her own effort to appear cheered worked as a distraction. Regrets and disappointment hidden behind a smile, she lengthened her steps to keep up as they walked towards the Juice Bar.

* * *

The shadows of dusk were beginning to appear before they emerged again, having stayed until Lt. Stone regretfully announced the bar was closing - for good. They had spent some time catching up with Rocky, who was still recovering from his back injury; Skull had said hello, and surprised all of them by being (for him) well dressed and considerably improved in manners. Later Tommy and Kat had returned and joined their little group, displaying all the symptoms of a couple happy to be together again. Kim was quite proud of the way she had managed to act as if nothing was wrong, although she caught a few concerned glances from Billy, who seemed to sense her mood, and from Kat, who always seemed to notice everything. Tommy, typically, either noticed nothing or gave no sign.

As they trooped out onto the sidewalk and headed for their various cars, Kat reached out to touch her arm, drawing her back to the relative privacy of a few steps behind the group of guys. "Kim..." she said, voice lowered. "Could I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure," Kim said dubiously, instantly expecting accusations and demands to stay away from her man, and just as quickly dismissing the thought as ridiculous. They fell back a few more steps.

"Where are you staying?" Kat asked.

"Uh - in a hotel. None of my family lives here anymore."

"I know. Why don't you stay with me over the break? It would be nicer for you than a hotel, and cost a lot less." Kat smiled. "And it would give us more of a chance to catch up."

"But - won't your parents mind? I don't want to impose."

"I've already called them and asked, and they're looking forward to seeing you again."

"But..." Kim repeated, and then decided to face her real reason for hesitating. "But you and Tommy look like you're - I mean, wouldn't it be awkward if I'm around?"

Kat glanced in Tommy's direction, and when she spoke again her voice was soft. "When we saw each other this morning, it felt right to try again. I hope things work out this time. But no matter who's going out with Tommy and who isn't, we're still friends, aren't we? I would never want anything to get in the way of that."

Shame almost flushed Kim's cheeks as she recalled her easy dismissal of Kat's feelings less than a day ago, when Tommy had seemed the only important person in the world. "Nothing will," she said with a genuine smile, and leaned forward to hug Kat again.

* * *

_"She seems nice," Alpha said noncommittally._

_"She is." Kim sighed. "I guess I kind of forgot how nice she really is."_

* * *

A few hours later Kim paused just inside the hotel room door, looking down at the hotel stationery envelope she had just stepped on. The statement of her bill, no doubt; they'd said they would give her one when she had called to tell them she was checking out. She dropped it on the desk and left it unopened as her eyes rested on the phone, whose message light stayed stubbornly unlit. She had given Wyatt the name of the hotel before their fight; if he wanted to talk he should have called by now. If he cared, if he wanted her back...

What was the point of thinking about it? And why was she just standing there? With a sigh, Kim pulled her suitcase out of the closet and began to pack. No more than ten minutes later she closed the door behind her and headed for the elevator with only one more glance at the phone. She'd call her dorm roommate later and give her Kat's address and phone number, so if Wyatt wanted to find her he could track her down. No point in waiting or wondering, or in thinking about it at all.

* * *

_"You could call __him__, you know. Girls call guys all the time in the Twentieth Century, or so I hear," Alpha commented as they watched the other Kim walk away, head bowed and shoulders slumped at first, then straightening, defiance in the spring of her step._

_"The fight was __his__ fault. Why should I call? I mean, why should she?" Kim retorted. _

_"You have too much pride to make the first move."_

_"That's right," Kim said, with a sharp look at the little robot. Impossible to see any expression on that metallic face, but had she heard mockery in his voice? "What's wrong with that?"_

_"Oh, nothing, if pride makes you happy." Alpha waved a hand and their surroundings blurred and faded, then brightened into sun and blue sky. "Not much to see here now. Shall we skip ahead?"_

* * *

A little over three months later Kim turned her face up to the bright warm sunshine of an April day on the campus of Angel Grove University, smiling as a squirrel perched on a branch overhead seemed to look back at her approvingly. She took a few more steps across the grass of the park-like central square and leaned against the trunk of a tree, lacing her fingers together to hold the pile of books she was carrying. Looking down at them, she smiled again.

Once she'd made the final decision not to return to Florida the chance to take a few months off from school had been welcome, giving her the time to visit both her parents and to find a part-time job she could schedule around her classes. AGU had accepted her just in time for the spring quarter that had just begun, due largely to its policy of guaranteed admission for students from Angel Grove High which they had decided to extend to her, despite her having left before graduation. Whether she'd be able to transfer all her college credits was still uncertain. Kim had to admit to having some second thoughts about her decision - but at the time there hadn't seemed to be any real choice, not when she had accepted the fact she would never hear from Wyatt. Much as she told herself she didn't care, the thought still stung her and cast a shadow over her spirits, even now. With a toss of her head Kim told herself it was just hurt pride.

Billy had also applied to AGU at the last moment and had been snapped up immediately, not surprising with his combination of genius IQ, highest possible SATs, and outstanding high school record. The two of them had become close, even closer than during their Ranger days, perhaps because they had both returned from a time away and isolated from the others, and both felt a little like outsiders. It was nice having a friend she could talk to about anything, anything at all, including the adventures they had shared all those years ago - adventures which seemed all the more a part of the past now that the Power Chamber and Zordon were gone.

Yes, things had worked out, even if it wasn't quite the way she had hoped. It surprised her a little that it hardly bothered her anymore to see Tommy and Kat back together - not that the two of them were really spending much time together - Tommy had inexplicably developed both a fascination with paleontology and a streak of academic enthusiasm, and seemed to be studying all the time, while Kat was still pursuing her dreams of a career in dance.

And Kim herself? After the Pan Globals she found she had no real desire to continue in gymnastics beyond keeping in shape, and nothing else so far interested her in particular. Just a natural sense of aimlessness, she told herself; she just hadn't found her path here yet.

"Penny for your thoughts."

Kim smiled at the familiar voice, and turned her head to see Billy. He must have just come from class, and was smiling at her over a bag stuffed with books. "Not sure they're worth that much," she replied. "Just thinking about how my life has changed in the last few months."

"For the good, I hope."

"Yeah, for the good." No point in bringing up a few silly doubts or regrets, not now.

Billy lowered his book-bag to the ground and turned to lean against the tree beside her. "Kim, I was thinking..."

"You're _always_ thinking." Kim laughed.

But Billy's voice was serious. "There's going to be a party at the student union for the start of the quarter, you know."

"Yeah, I know. Why, you want to go? Maybe Tommy and Kat can make it too; that would be fun. And Jason, of course, and maybe Rocky." Kim glanced at Billy, surprised by the hint of a frown between his brows.

"I was thinking more about you and me going," he said quietly. "You know, together."

"You and me?" Kim said blankly, and saw his frown deepen.

"Yes, Kim. I mean... this." Billy stepped away from the tree and turned, hands braced on the trunk on either side of her, leaning in tentatively. When she didn't move, mostly out of surprise, he gently but firmly kissed her.

They stood with faces still very close for a few seconds as Kim felt her heart bump and her breath catch. Startled, confused, embarrassed, and yet inexplicably thrilled, she looked down at the ground.

After another moment Billy stepped back. "I guess I shouldn't have done that," he said. "Sorry."

"Don't be." Kim raised her eyes and focused on his. Such nice eyes, she thought irrelevantly. Blue in some lights, green in others, sometimes sort of hazel... Billy was really very attractive, and very nice. That kiss hadn't been at all bad, and it was certainly flattering to have the smartest guy in Angel Grove asking her for a date. Why had she never thought of the possibility before? Impulsively she took a step forward and rose up on her toes, hands on his shoulders, and kissed him back. This time it lasted considerably longer.

"So does that mean you'll go to the party with me?" Billy asked with a smile as they moved apart enough to look at each other.

* * *

_"Me and Billy?" Kimberly demanded._

_"Why not? He's brilliant, good-hearted, and good-looking. A triple threat."_

_"But - I've known him forever. He's like my brother or something." Kim shuddered._

_"That seems to have changed." Alpha waved a hand dismissively. "Let's skip the courtship - full of dinners, museums, plays, concerts, walks in the park, etc. etc. A few good movies, but I've seen them. Lots of conversation, but people in love all say the same things, don't you think?"_

_"In love? But we - they - haven't even gone on their first date-" Kim stopped and blinked as the scene around them changed into something entirely different. The interior of a lovely old building with stained glass windows - a high arched ceiling - rows of benches crowded with people in suits and fancy dresses. And walking down the aisle between them..._

_"We're getting __married__?" she gasped._

_"Such a beautiful bride!" Alpha exclaimed. "And that dress! I think - I think I'm going to cry!"_

* * *

"I do."

Kim held out her hand as Billy slid the ring onto her finger, and looked at it admiringly. Married. Kimberly Ann Hart was suddenly transformed into Kimberly Ann Cranston.

She looked up into her new husband's eyes, smiling brilliantly. No regrets, or not enough to mention. No, not even when she glanced out at the guests and caught sight of Tommy beaming at them, Kat at his side wiping a tear away, and for a stray moment even imagined she caught a glimpse of another remembered face. No regrets. After all, Billy was handsome, sweet, and utterly brilliant. He had a great future ahead of him. At the very least, life with a husband like that would never be dull.

* * *

"Happy, honey?"

"The happiest day of my life," Kim murmured. She accepted Billy's kiss before looking down again at the tiny baby in her arms. So new, so helpless, and so amazing - her baby. And Billy's, of course. She glanced up again to see him beaming proudly.

"You look radiant," he said.

"Right, radiant. I can just imagine what my face looks like. And I _can't_ imagine what my hair looks like."

"You always look beautiful to me. And our daughter looks beautiful too."

Kim examined the red, wrinkled little face in her arms. "She _is_ beautiful, isn't she? Takes after you."

"Astrid Michelle Cranston," Billy said very softly, and reached down to touch the baby's fingers. "Welcome to the world."

* * *

_"We have a baby already?" Kimberly exclaimed. _

_"Yes. You married as soon as you graduated from college, and decided to start a family after Billy got his PhD from MIT and began working in their physics department as a researcher and teacher."_

_"MIT?" Kim frowned. "So are we living in Massachusetts now?"_

_"Yes, since after you got out of college."_

_Kim's frown deepened. "This is moving pretty fast."_

_"Hold on to your hat. We're just getting to the interesting part."_

* * *

The study he had taken over as a workroom was so definitely and completely _Billy_ that Kim always found herself smiling when she walked in. Two walls lined with overstuffed bookcases, a third covered with shelves of tools, instruments, and electronics, the fourth taken up with a long workbench, and a large desk in the middle of it all covered with papers, magazines, books, and enough parts to stock a hardware store. Billy himself was hunched at the desk, poking a screwdriver into a mass of wires and bits of metal. He didn't seem to have noticed her.

"Billy?"

"Um?" He looked up, light glinting from the glasses he had resumed wearing after he decided the contact lenses were too frivolous and time-consuming. "Oh, hi, Kim."

"Hi yourself. It's time for dinner."

"I'm right in the middle of something here..."

She moved close behind him and ran her fingers up his arm and over his shoulder. "Come on, honey, I spent the last two hours cooking."

"You did?"

"Uh huh. Chicken parmigiana, your favorite."

"It is?"

"Yes, it is." She laughed as he looked up, smiling. "Besides, don't you think your daughter should see you once in a while? I'm not sure she knows what you look like."

"At this age her visual acuity isn't sufficiently developed to recognize individual faces," he answered absently.

"Billllyyyyy... If you don't come out of here once in a while, _I'm_ going to forget what you look like."

"Sorry, honey." Billy put down his project and got to his feet. "Have I been that bad?"

"No. Worse." She grinned.

"Can I be forgiven?" He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close. "If I ask really nicely?"

"Well, we'll have to see about that..." Anything else she might have said was smothered in a kiss.

* * *

"Daddy, what's this?" The little girl pulled herself up on tiptoe with a grip on the arm of Billy's chair, and looked at what she could see of the electronics on his desk with an expression of fascination.

"You wouldn't understand, honey," Billy said with a grin and a tousle of her hair.

"Try me." They both smiled at the confident tone of that childish voice.

"Okay." Billy gave Kim a wry look before turning back to his daughter. "This is a working model of an antigravity device. Or it will be, if I get a chance to finish it."

"Antigrabity? To make things float?"

"Well... yes." Billy looked up at Kim again. "Amazing comprehension and vocabulary for only three years old."

"She's _your_ daughter, isn't she? Come on, sweetie, let's let Daddy work. You can help Mommy in the kitchen."

"I wanna stay here with Daddy!"

"Why not leave her here for a while?" Billy said. "I'll find something for her to play with."

"Well... make sure you keep an eye on her."

Kim cast a glance back before she closed the door. Billy was bent over Astrid, showing her some piece of equipment while launching into one of the technical explanations Kim still found incomprehensible, as the little girl nodded solemnly. For a moment she wondered how she would feel if her three-year-old daughter could understand what she couldn't - and instantly dismissed the thought. But it returned. If Astrid had inherited even part of Billy's intellect, someday in the not too distant future she _would_ understand.

Having a brilliant child should be a joy. With a sigh Kim resolved not to let herself feel left out, and started for the kitchen and the suddenly unattractive challenge of cooking dinner.

* * *

"Billy?"

Kim waited, but he didn't even turn away from his workbench as he answered. "Umm? What is it?"

"It's a beautiful day. I was thinking we should go to the park and get some sun and fresh air. Astrid's looking forward to it."

"Sounds nice. You two have fun."

She frowned. "I thought just possibly you might want to come with us and actually spend some quality time with your wife and daughter."

"I _want_ to, but it's just not a good time. I need a few more hours to finish this phase. Maybe later, or tomorrow."

"It's always later, or tomorrow." Kim sighed, trying to hold back her annoyance. "Isn't it enough that you work ten hours a day at the University? Do you really have to keep at it at night and on the weekends? You need to relax - and Astrid and I need you."

He had turned to look at her, and after a moment held out his hand. "Look, I understand, and you're right. But the work I'm doing is important, besides the money. Commercially available, affordable antigravity could revolutionize the way we live, cut fuel costs, save lives. I need to do this."

"I know. I know how important your work is, and I don't want to get in the way of that." Kim sighed again in frustrated disappointment. "All right. I'll leave you alone."

"Kim... Look, I'm sorry. Give me a few minutes to get ready and I'll go with you."

"No, you need to work. It's okay."

"No, it isn't." Billy was watching her with concern when she looked up. "Something's bothering you, and I've been too wrapped up in my project to pay attention. Is it just me, and my being busy so much? That I'm not spending time with you and Astrid?"

"Part of it." Kim crossed her arms and hunched a shoulder at him. "But - I don't know. Maybe part of it is that I used to feel like I was doing something important too, back when we were Rangers. Now... I cook and clean and talk to my five-year-old daughter who already knows more about science than I do, and even when I run into a neighbor and have some actual adult conversation, somehow it's always about whose lawn needs mowing and the latest recipe and what's on sale at the supermarket..." She trailed off, aware of Billy's frown. Kim shrugged awkwardly, not quite looking at him. "I guess I just get... bored or something," she added quietly, although frustrated, stifled, and aimless might have been better words. "Like I don't have anything important to do, like you do."

"You don't think raising our daughter is important?" Billy asked, his voice neutral.

"Of course I do. I just didn't quite see my life turning out like this." Kim raised her hands in a gesture vaguely including their home and everything in it.

Billy got up and came closer. "It was your decision to stay home and take care of Astrid."

"I _know_ that."

"It wasn't an accusation, just an observation. Astrid is about to start school. You could go to work part-time, or full-time if we find a day care or someone to take care of her for a few hours."

"Maybe."

"Definitely." He reached for her shoulders, smiled, and bent down to her for a kiss. "All you need is to get out of the house a little, and have something interesting and challenging to do. I can help more around the house and with taking care of Astrid, too, so you don't have to worry about that."

"No." Kim shook her head. "No, you already have too much work. I'll find something part-time."

"You sure?" Billy looked at her, the concern back in his eyes.

Kim managed a more-or-less sincere smile and kissed him back. "Sure I'm sure. The most important thing I can do right now is not take you away from your work. In fact, I'd better let you get back to it."

"Yes, I have several tests to complete today if I'm going to stay on schedule." Billy gave her shoulders a last affectionate squeeze before stepping back and turning to the workbench, his mind obviously already on other things. "We can talk more at dinner, okay?"

"Sure. That'll be nice."

Kim paused in the doorway. She could get a job, yes, but what kind of a job with a bachelor's degree in botany and a background in amateur gymnastics? Nothing to compare with what Billy was doing. Nothing to compare with what they had accomplished as Rangers, or with her brief hours of fame in the Pan Globals. She turned to look back at Billy bent over some incomprehensible instrument on the bench, probably no longer aware that she was in the room, or even alive. She smiled with a tinge of bitterness. Maturity and success had done wonders for the shy, geeky intellectual she had been such good friends with in high school. He had gone on to even bigger and better things than being a Ranger - and somewhere along the way had left her behind.

* * *

"Billy, aren't you coming out?"

Kim picked her way further into the room past piles of books and bits of metal and wire. The study had become more cluttered over the years, as it filled with the results of Billy's past and current projects and acquired a layer of books and manuals that had been carelessly tossed aside. How he could find anything was beyond her. Sometimes it was even difficult to find _him_, as he might be anywhere: hunched over an instrument, reading in the corner, stretched out on the floor rewiring some gizmo.

"Huh?" The voice came from her side, and Kim turned to see a familiar head rise from behind a chair draped with cables. "Why, what's going on?"

"Billy..." She sighed in exasperation. "We're having a dinner party for the Wilsons, the Browns, and the Martins. Our neighbors, remember them?"

"Was that tonight?" Billy wasn't even paying attention; he was inspecting the mass of wires in his hands.

"Yes, that was tonight. You're not even dressed."

"Can't I skip it?"

"No! You're the host, Billy."

"I really need to finish this up tonight, Kim. It's important."

"Right, important. The antigravity project was important. The water purification project was important. Now the radiation dampening project is important. When do _we_ get to be important? Maybe you're happy to spend all your time fiddling with machinery and computers, but I want a normal life. I want a social life. I want to have friends and go to parties and go out and have fun!"

Kim realized how loud she had gotten as she saw Billy staring at her. "No one's stopping you from doing any of those things," he said.

"You're my husband! I want to do them with you!" Kim took a breath as Billy made no response, and deliberately lowered her voice. "You don't even care about staying in touch with Tommy, or Jason, or any of the others. Did you even know Tommy had a new Ranger team in Reefside, or that he and Kat have finally decided to stay in one place at the same time long enough to start planning their wedding? Or that Rocky and Adam are opening a chain of dōjōs together? Or that Jason's in the California State Senate, and that Skull's doing another tour with his band?"

"I know now, thanks to you. Obviously you've managed to stay in contact."

"See? That's exactly what I mean. If I left it up to you we'd never hear from our oldest friends again."

"We've been through all this. I'm sorry if it seems selfish, but the fact is my work is more important than my social life. You should be glad your own job leaves you with leisure time."

"So now my job isn't important?"

He sighed. "That's not what I said, and you know it. Maybe I should put it another way: if I don't keep up with my R&D contracts we won't have money for this big house you like so much. Would you prefer that?"

"No." Kim frowned and clamped down on her temper. "Look, I understand what you're saying, but with you shut up in here all the time this big house seems pretty empty. I miss you. Astrid misses you. If you could just try a little harder to spend some time with us..."

With another sigh, he straightened and put the wires down carefully. "All right, if you insist. I'm coming."

* * *

"Billy, aren't you ready yet?"

"Um? Oh, is it time already?"

Kim braced a hand on her hip and raised her chin. Always the same story; she had to come in here and pry him away from whatever research he was involved in. "Just once, I'd like you to remember when we're going out, or be ready when we have guests, or even come to dinner without having to be dragged," she said, not even trying to keep the irritation from her voice.

"Daddy, hurry up." Astrid was beside her in the doorway, giving Kim a quick, nervous glance before continuing. "We don't want to miss the beginning of the competition."

"Why don't you two go on ahead, and I'll meet you when I'm done here."

"Go out to the car and wait for me, honey," Kim said, handing over the keys. What she had to say was not for her twelve-year-old daughter's ears.

"Billy, I mean it," she said as soon as the door closed. "My life and what I do should count for something too. I've made a pretty good career for myself as a school gymnastics and sports coach."

"I know that, Kim-"

"_Do_ you? Sometimes you don't act like it. Maybe what I do isn't as earth-shakingly important as what you do, but it means a lot to me. It means a lot to Astrid too right now, since she happens to be one of the kids who have been training for the last year to compete tonight. It's okay if you don't show up for my sake, I understand that you're busy. But if you hurt _her_..."

"All right, you've made your point. I'm sorry, and I'll be right there." Billy's small sigh was not lost on Kim as he reluctantly got to his feet with a last longing glance at the diagrams on his desk.

It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him not to bother, to stay with the work he found so much more fascinating than his family, but the thought of Astrid waiting outside and of how she would feel if her dad didn't show up to watch her performance closed her mouth again. With only an impatient glance at her husband, she turned her back and headed for the door.

* * *

Late again. Kim glared at the empty seat next to her as if it were Billy himself, and glanced at her watch for the twentieth time. The huge auditorium was buzzing with anticipation; the rows of students in folding chairs on the floor below the spectator's seats were fidgeting and chattering to each other with excitement. The ceremony would begin any moment. If he missed this, the way he had either missed or had to be dragged to every important moment in her life or Astrid's…

"Excuse me. Sorry." She heard him before she turned to look and saw her husband edging towards her between the rows of chairs. In another moment he sank into the seat next to her with a low, "Sorry I'm late. Looks like they haven't started yet."

"No, but you cut it pretty damn close." Kim nodded at the stage as a man she recognized as the high school principal advanced to the podium and tapped the microphone, and the soft buzz of the audience subsided into something approaching quiet.

"I wouldn't miss my daughter's graduation," Billy said, voice lowered but tinged with annoyance.

"Glad you could spare the time." She ignored his sharp glance and looked towards the stage where the principal had begun to speak, hardly hearing him through her angry thoughts.

"I _do_ have other commitments," Billy hissed at her in a whisper. "My research projects. My classes. My students."

"And they're more important to you than your family?"

"No," Billy said with exaggerated patience, "As I've explained a few hundred times, they're not more important but they do matter. I'm trying to juggle all these things, and instead of making any attempt to understand all you seem able to do is… nag."

Kim felt her face flush with rage. "And all _you_ can do is trot out the same old excuses. No one held a gun to your head and made you take on all that stuff! You _want_ to be doing it!"

"I must admit my work life has been more pleasant than my home life for quite some time now!"

"Mine hasn't been too wonderful either! I didn't get married to have a husband who's never around and hardly talks to me on the rare occasions when he is!"

"Maybe you think you should have married Tommy instead. Or Wyatt, for that matter. I'm sure they'd be much more entertaining!"

"Maybe I should have!"

Kim stopped abruptly, biting back more angry words as she realized faces all around them had turned to watch in curiosity, dismay, disapproval. Blindly she turned towards the stage again, too overwhelmed at first with anger and hurt to realize what was going on until she heard her daughter's name called.

A breath of pride caught in her throat and constricted her heart as Astrid stood, climbed the steps to the stage, and received her diploma with a radiant smile. Kim felt a smile soften her own expression as Astrid looked up, located them, and waved with a grin.

Her daughter, her beautiful daughter - _their_ daughter, she reminded herself - who seemed to have inherited the best parts from both of her parents: Billy's brains and dedication, Kim's gymnastic talents and sense of fun. Astrid was graduating early, like her father before her, and was headed for an Ivy League college in the fall. More important to Kim, she had somehow grown into a well-adjusted teenager with a kind heart and a level head.

"What's wrong with us?" she murmured. "We almost missed our daughter's big moment because we were fighting."

"I know." She felt a warm hand touch her own where it rested on the chair arm, and then withdraw. "But despite everything that's gone wrong between us - that's one thing we did right," Billy said softly beside her, nodding downwards.

"Yes. One thing." The flush of pride ebbed into a sudden surge of depression. Billy was right - Astrid was the one good thing out of the years of their marriage. Just one? She blinked back tears. It was an exaggeration, yes. But not much of one, as her mind ticked off the good moments - mostly in the early years - and the bad, as they had sunk into a mire of complaints and indifference and sniping. More and more Astrid had seemed to be the one thing keeping them together, but she was no longer a child. What was there really left of their marriage?

* * *

_"This is your idea of interesting?" Kim demanded. "Watching my marriage fall apart?"_

_"Love and how it can go wrong is always interesting to a student of human nature," Alpha responded. _

_"Well, __**I**__ think it's depressing. Can we move along?"_

_"Certainly. And here we are." Alpha waved, and their surroundings blurred and shifted into somewhere else in the way Kim was almost getting used to._

_They were now in a large, impressively formal building with marble floors and uncomfortable-looking wooden benches along the walls. The sound of footsteps echoed as various people went on their way up and down the wide hallway. Kim took a closer look at the doorway nearest them._

_"A courtroom? This is the courthouse?" she asked._

_"Yes. And here you come."_

* * *

Kim stepped out of the courtroom with a brief and uncomfortable smile at Billy as he held the door for her. He seemed equally uneasy as they silently started down the hallway for the elevators. After a few steps, as soon as they were out of earshot of anyone around them, he caught her arm and stopped her.

"Kim..." he started, hesitated, and then went on, "I guess I just want to say thanks for making the divorce - well, less painful than it could have been. Especially, thanks for not contesting shared custody of Astrid."

"You're a good father; it's only right that she spend half her time outside of college with you - what little time is left before she's grown up and on her own, anyway. Besides, I suspect she has more in common with you than with me," Kim said.

"Our daughter may have inherited my brains, but she also inherited your heart," he replied. "That's just as important. Maybe more, in terms of finding happiness in life."

"Have I made your life unhappy, Billy?" she asked softly.

"Of course not." He took her arm as they slowly started walking again. "What happened to our marriage is unfortunate, but it certainly wasn't your fault, and I hope not entirely mine. Perhaps - perhaps we moved too quickly into dating and marriage, maybe we were both lonely and looking for someone to feel close to. Maybe we were both on the rebound."

"Or maybe we just don't have much in common, and didn't make enough of an effort to be part of each other's lives." Kim slanted an almost teasing glance up at him. "Do you ever wonder what would have happened if you had married someone else who could be a real partner to you and get involved in your work? Like Trini?"

Billy smiled a little. "Possibly once or twice. Don't tell me you never wondered how things would have been different if you had married Tommy or Wyatt."

"Well... Possibly once or twice."

Billy's smile got a little wider. "Come on, I'll buy you lunch."

"_Now_ you have time to spend with me," Kim grumbled, and laughed at the look on his face.

* * *

"Divorce? We're - I mean, they're - divorced?" Kim demanded.

"It certainly looks that way," Alpha answered.

Kim crossed her arms, feeling an absurd urge to cry. It wasn't her, after all, just some alternate timeline future version of her - no reason to be upset and angry, and yet she was. "All those years of my - her - life, just wasted?" she said. "All that time and effort, a whole marriage, for nothing?"

"Is Astrid nothing? Was twenty years of a marriage with many more happy moments than sad or angry ones just a waste?" Alpha looked up at her. "Things should not be judged only by the way they end, but by the entirety of their existence."

"Yeah, right. Very philosophical." Kim frowned.

"What's really bothering you about this?"

Good question, and worth finding an answer for. Kim stifled her annoyance and tried to respond honestly, for herself as much as for Alpha. "I guess... I just thought when I get married it'll be forever. That's the way it's supposed to be. Divorce - it feels - sort of like I failed, even though it wasn't really me. You know?"

Alpha's voice was gentle as he answered. "I know. It's a peculiar weakness of the human species to expect perfection in an imperfect condition like life."

"I don't expect perfection, exactly, just... something better. Someone I have more in common with. Someone who wouldn't take me away from my old friends..." They were still standing in the now-empty courthouse. The sky was darkening outside the windows, and a janitor appeared with a mop and bucket, his footsteps echoing in the deserted hallway with a hollow sound. Kim shivered, depression settling over her. "Can we get out of here?" she asked.

"Of course." Alpha moved closer and reached out to take her hand. "Since you didn't like this possible future very much... Let's try another!"

"_What?_"

To be continued...


	3. Friendship

Power Rangers belongs to Disney/Saban. I am using the characters without permission, but I am not and don't expect to make money from this.

Rated PG: a little minor language, some mature situations. Brief discussion of abortion.

Can't believe it's been over a year since I updated, or did any serious writing! Kindly take a moment to review despite my slowness.

* * *

Friendship

Angel Grove, 9:40 am

Kim blinked in the sudden wash of bright sunshine, and looked around to see a city street, a sidewalk, a well-kept lawn and a walkway leading to a familiar door. Her eyes barely took in the sight of the Youth Center and Juice Bar before snapping back to the petite brunette approaching and then pausing uncertainly, staring at the door in hesitation.

"What is this?" she demanded, turning towards Alpha indignantly - only to stop in mid-protest, mouth open, eyes widening.

Instead of the short golden and red robot she had expected to see, a woman with long brown hair and wearing a flowing white dress with a garland of flowers on her head smiled sweetly at her. "What? Who...?" Kim stammered, falling back a step.

"Oh right, Princess Shayla is after your time!" the woman said, eyes widening and a graceful hand lifting to her mouth in dismay. "Sorry to have startled you, but using the same body gets so dull after a while. I don't know how you humans do it." Smiling again, she held out her arms and did a quick spin, skirts billowing. "Much more comfortable. Now, what were you saying?"

"I... uh..." Kim gave her a ferocious glare, which had no effect at all. "Don't _do_ that!"

"Sorry." She didn't look sorry at all.

Kim glanced at the building again, and at the other Kim, who was still apparently trying to make up her mind whether to go in. "What are we doing back here? What's _she_ doing here?" She looked again, more closely. "Hey, wait a minute! She's young again - my age again!"

"Of course. We're having a bit of a do-over."

"A what?"

"We have returned to the morning after you arrived in Angel Grove in December 1997."

"What on earth for?" Kim glanced at her other self again. "Just to see me make the same mistakes all over again?"

"Of course not; we're here to see you make new - er, choices this time." The woman crossed her arms. "We're here to observe a different possible future for you. In this timeline, you've arrived here twenty minutes later than in the one we already saw."

"What difference does that make?"

"All the difference in the world. Come on, she's going in."

The other Kimberly had finally made up her mind and was opening the door to the Juice Bar. The woman in white started after her, leaving Kim with no choice but to follow. "Who did you say you are now?" she muttered as they stepped inside.

"Shayla. Mentor to the Wild Force team. I rather like the mentors, although Zordon could be a bit stuffy and Dimitria had that annoying thing about questions and... But I digress. Come along now, and watch." She beckoned, and motioned at the other Kim who was now standing just inside the entrance, staring across the room at a table crowded with her old friends and former teammates.

* * *

Kim stopped just short of the entrance into the main part of the Juice Bar, eyes seeking out their favorite table, sure that was where Tommy would have chosen to sit - and froze, breath stopping on a little gasp. It couldn't be - but it was. Kat, hair golden under the lights, bright profile turned to Tommy, eyes for only each other as they smiled like old friends well met, or like lovers reunited. Too late. It was too late; maybe it had always been. She barely registered Jason and Adam, and felt only a moment's dull surprise at Billy also sitting at the table before turning and starting blindly back the way she had come.

Outside she stopped, for a moment unable to remember which way her hotel was. As she hesitated, the sound of her name came from behind her.

"Kim! Kim, wait up!"

Jason. He must have seen her, and followed her outside. Determined not to let him see how upset she was, Kim arranged her face in a smile and turned around. "Jason, hi."

"Hi yourself." He came up to her, his eyes sharp and concerned. "I saw you inside. When you ran back out like that... are you okay?"

"Sure. Sure, I'm okay. I guess I just got nervous about seeing everyone again." Kim gave the Juice Bar an uneasy glance. "Did the others...?"

"No. I told them I saw an old friend and had to go say hello." He smiled. "It's true enough." After a look back at the door he turned to her again. "I feel like getting out of here. You?"

Kim smiled gratefully. "Yes."

"Where?"

"Anywhere but here," she answered, and immediately wondered how much she was giving away.

Jason only nodded. "Come on, let's take a ride."

* * *

"Why here?" Kim asked.

They were walking across an expanse of rocky, sandy ground only intermittently broken by a few hardy bushes and shrubs and a scattering of wiry grass. She shaded her eyes and looked up to the outcropping above, where a complex, rounded structure should loom as if it grew from the gray rocks surrounding it. All her eyes found now was a scattering of scorched rubble.

"I don't know. Guess I wanted to pay my respects, sort of. Or let it sink in that it's really gone." Jason took a long look at the remains of the Power Chamber, and then sighed and found a shady spot and a boulder to sit on. "Maybe I'm feeling nostalgic, with the Juice Bar closing and all." He looked up and smiled. "And with seeing you again, of course, and Billy."

"And with Kat back," Kim muttered, half to herself.

"Kat, too." Jason's eyes seemed much too aware for Kim's comfort before he looked away.

Kim looked upward again, shading her eyes. Even though she hadn't been inside Zordon's headquarters for years, its destruction still left her feeling oddly empty. "What do you suppose happened?" she asked.

Jason shrugged. "Don't know for sure. An attack by Divatox, of course, but beyond that - I don't know and I haven't been able to find any of the Rangers to ask."

Kim shivered slightly, and looked away from the tumbled rock and stone. "They'll be okay. Right?"

"They're Rangers. Some of us may fail. Some of us lose our powers. But the Rangers always go on."

Kim looked up at the bitter tinge in his voice. "It wasn't easy for you, losing the Gold Power, was it?"

"No, it wasn't." Jason lowered his gaze to her face and broke the tension with a smile. "You had the right idea - leave town when you gave up your powers. It was hard at first, seeing the others going into action and not being a part of it."

"I never thought of it quite like that, but you're right. If I'd been here, I don't think I would have liked seeing Kat wearing my suit." _Or dating my boyfriend,_ Kim added mentally. Not fair, she immediately reminded herself.

"I suppose not." Jason was watching her, with that look that seemed to see more than she wanted it to. "Kim... What happened in Florida?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean you decided to fly here for the holidays, and then you suddenly started asking about Tommy and whether Kat would be here. You show up at the Juice Bar and then take off again the second you saw them together. It doesn't take a lot to figure out something happened between you and Wyatt."

"Yeah, you're right." Kim tried a laugh and heard how weak it sounded. She twisted her fingers together and stared down at them as she continued. "We - Wyatt and me - we had a fight. He wanted me to spend the break with him and his parents, and I wanted to come here. He doesn't understand... maybe no one who hasn't been a Ranger could. I kept trying to tell him how important Angel Grove and all of you are to me, but I couldn't explain it without telling him about the Ranger stuff. He kept saying I was choosing my old high school friends over him and his family."

"Which you were." Jason softened it with a smile.

"Well, yeah, but for a good reason, you know? He got really mad, and said some things, and I said some things..." She tried for a casual shrug. "We broke up. It's for the best, really."

"So you came back for Tommy."

"Not for..." Kim stopped her automatic denial - Jason deserved better than a lie. "Okay, right the second time too. You said he and Kat had split up when she went to London, so I thought - well, you know."

Jason's voice was toneless. "They did split up. This morning I was as surprised to see her as you were. So was Tommy. They started talking and I guess the sparks flew again." He glanced up at Kim. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It was stupid of me to think Tommy would ever want to get back with me after I dumped him in a letter." Kim held up a hand to cut off his denial. "It's true. It was an awful thing for me to do."

"Would a phone call have been any better than a letter? I don't think there's any way to break that kind of news that wouldn't hurt."

"I guess. But I still broke up with him for someone else. Sometimes I'm surprised you're even still talking to me, considering how close you and Tommy are."

"Maybe I know how impossible it is to control who you fall for, even when it's someone you shouldn't..." Jason trailed off, hesitating, and then seemed to make up his mind. "You want to know what's _really_ stupid? I - kind of fell for Kat, when we were Rangers together." He looked up at Kim, lips twisting ironically. "My best friend's girl, not to mention I was still dating Emily. Not a thing I could do about it. Then when Kat and Tommy broke up, and so did Emily and me... well, I thought maybe things would change." He sighed. "You're not the only one who was disappointed today."

Jason sounded genuinely sad, so much that Kim made the effort to shake herself out of what she realized had been rapidly turning into a self-pity session. "I'm sorry," she ventured after a few moments.

"Thanks." He smiled. "You're the only person I've told my disgraceful secret to."

"I'm glad you did." Kim smiled back. Time to get the conversation on safer ground than romance. "So - was that really Billy I saw in the Juice Bar?" she asked. "What's he doing back on Earth?"

* * *

"_Hard to believe it's gone," Kim said softly, looking up past her other self and Jason, her interest in their conversation fading as Jason explained what she already knew about Billy's return. _

"_Yes, it is. I can see the entire span of the Ranger's history, with all its many tragedies and the ultimate destruction of virtually every headquarters used by every team, and yet this one still shakes me." 'Shayla' shivered slightly, hands hugging her arms. "This was the first, the longest-lasting, and in some ways the best. I miss it."_

_Kim found herself sharing a sad smile with the creature who had brought her on this journey against her will, for the first time feeling a kinship, a bond between them. They were both products of the Power, in their own ways._

_Shayla glanced away, to where Jason and the other Kim had gotten to their feet and started back down the mountainside to the road below and Jason's car. "Come," she said. "I think they have a little more to say that we should hear."_

* * *

"Sorry this was such a downer," Jason was saying.

"No problem at all. I'm glad we came," Kim responded.

"What now? You have breakfast yet? We could stop at Sammy's Diner; it's on the way back into town."

"Yeah, I'm kinda hungry. Sounds good." Neither of them suggested the Juice Bar.

Jason paused with his hand on the open car door. "Kim, where are you staying?"

"At the Grove Inn. Why?"

"Why don't you stay with my family? The 'rents would love to see you again. I've got a dorm room, so you could sleep in my bedroom."

"Don't you want to be at home over the holidays? I don't want to impose."

"You won't be. The dorm's less than twenty minutes away; I'll spend every waking moment at the house so it won't make any difference." Jason checked his watch. "I'll call them from the diner, and when they say yes you can call the hotel before checkout time. Deal?"

Jason was impossible to resist when he turned those big brown eyes on her with that sweet, hopeful smile. Kim gave in with a laugh and nodded. "Deal."

* * *

As Jason had expected, his parents had been happy to invite Kim to stay with them for as long as she wanted. Christmas with the Scotts was a happy prospect - and yet, Kim felt a sharp pang as she stepped inside her hotel room and saw no message light blinking on the phone.

"Hey, what's this?" Jason asked from behind her. He bent to pick up an unaddressed hotel stationery envelope from the floor.

"Must be my statement. Just put it anywhere, I'll get it later," Kim said, unable to resist taking another look at the telephone.

"No calls," Jason said softly.

"Right, no calls." Kim sighed and then straightened her shoulders, resolutely turning away from the desk. "Well, Wyatt knows how to find me if he wants to. It'll only take me a few minutes to pack, and then we can get going." She forced a cheerful smile. "I can't wait to see your parents again. And I have to go shopping, have to have something to give them for Christmas!"

"You don't have to give them anything." Jason grinned and shook his head. "Admit it, you just want to go shopping."

"Oh, what do you know?" Kim mock-punched his shoulder. "Where are the good sales this year?" She rolled her eyes. "Look who I'm asking. Never mind."

* * *

"_How easily you walk away," Shayla said softly as the door closed, leaving emptiness behind._

"_Walk away? What, from a hotel room?"_

"_From your life in Florida. From Wyatt."_

"_He's the one... Oh, never mind. You don't understand."_

"_Neither do you. Not yet."_

"_Anyone ever tell you acting mysterious is very annoying?"_

"_All the time." Shayla smiled, and with a gesture they were in a large room, bright lights twinkling on a crowd of young people, filled with the sparkle of laughter and the pounding of music loud enough to dance to but not too loud to talk over._

* * *

Kim kept a smile firmly on her face as she returned Tommy's and Kat's waves from the other side of the dance floor in what was usually an auditorium in the Angel Grove University student union. No way she was going to let anyone know how seeing them together still set off twinges of envy and jealousy inside her. She watched them move onto the dance floor, coming close together in a slow number, and then looked away, but not before her thoughts followed the usual path that led to another painful pang - it had been over four months and Wyatt had made no effort to find her or contact her. So much for what she had once thought was their true love. Maybe there simply was no such thing.

This was no way to act at a party, Kim reminded herself. No moping allowed. She had no reason to feel lonely - Billy was talking to some girl who was in his advanced calculus class, Rocky was dancing with Tanya, another former Ranger who Kim had already become very friendly with, and Jason - she smiled more genuinely as she caught sight of him coming through the entrance. He paused, looking around, nodded at Tommy and Kat and then caught sight of Kim. With the flash of a grin he headed in her direction.

A lot had happened in the last few months. Kim had decided she didn't want to go back to Florida - an impulsive decision made for the wrong reasons, she had to admit, but it had worked out well. A little time off from school had been nice and given her a chance to visit her parents. She had been surprised AGU had accepted her transfer application so quickly, but pleased. Billy had also started courses this trimester, and it had almost seemed like old times, despite Tommy being at Stone Canyon University and having inexplicably turned into a science geek.

No, times had definitely changed. Tommy and Kat had become an established couple, and as their close friends Kim and Jason had found themselves frequently put in the position of going out with them. Both of them had joked about double-dating and laughed it off, but so much closeness had deepened their friendship even more than their old Ranger teamwork. Jason had been there when she felt rejected, when she had felt she had no one - and he still was, as he'd always been there for her. She didn't feel for him what she had felt for Tommy or Wyatt, and was sure she never would - but she couldn't think of anyone she'd rather see at this moment, Kim reflected as he came up to her and leaned in for a quick kiss on her cheek.

"Having a good time?" he asked.

"Having a better one now that you're here," she said. "C'mon, let's dance."

* * *

"_Don't tell me - this time I'm with Jason?" Kimberly demanded. _

"_Don't tell me you don't like the idea," Shayla replied._

"_But - but Jason? He's like my brother!"_

"_Like Billy was the last time?"_

"_Well, yeah," Kim said with a sinking feeling. "But no. Me and Jason?"_

"_Why not? He's a total hunk. Just look at those arms. Not to mention those shoulders... Yummy."_

"_But he's my friend. My former teammate. And that's all."_

"_Maybe you should have less attractive teammates."_

_Kim frowned as she watched her counterpart and Jason smiling at each other on the dance floor. "No, I don't see any fireworks. Just a couple of old friends, like I said."_

"_And of course friends can never become lovers."_

_Kim gave 'Shayla' a sharp look. "You mean me and Tommy? It's not the same." Angry, she glared at the dancing couples. "This is boring. Can we move along?"_

"_Your wish is my command." Shayla raised an arm and waved her hand, and the scene changed._

* * *

"So, you know how Tommy is spending so much time on his studies?"

"Like you don't spend all _your_ time practicing and rehearsing."

"Well, yeah, you're not the only one who's ambitious." Kat smiled into Tommy's already smiling face.

Kim rolled her eyes and sighed in impatience that was only half teasing as the happy couple spent a few more seconds gazing into each other's eyes instead of getting to the point. While she was having a good time on another 'double-date' and this was one of her favorite restaurants to have a leisurely dinner in, Tommy and Kat were being especially affectionate tonight, something that still set off a stab of jealousy she did her best to dismiss as selfish and childish.

_Very_ childish, she reminded herself. It had been a good year and a half since she had returned to Angel Grove. Way past time to stop thinking about Tommy, and move on. Problem was, so far she hadn't met anyone who interested her. Certainly no one she thought could make her feel - well, the way Tommy had. Or Wyatt. Kim sighed and glanced at Jason, sitting beside her the way he always seemed to be. Sometimes it was annoying, the way people they knew were always assuming they were boyfriend and girlfriend. More often it was amusing, and once in a while it made her wonder if the potential was there. Even Tommy and Kat kept inviting them along on dates, probably hoping sparks would fly. She hid a smile. If sparks hadn't flown in all these years, they were unlikely to start now.

"Okay, we've established that you're both busy. Is that what you invited us out to tell us? Because I'm not exactly falling over from surprise," Jason said.

"No, that's not what we want to tell you," Tommy said, taking Kat's hand. "You see, we figured that with us going to different schools miles apart and not having much time to spend together, well..."

"Well," Kat continued, "we decided the only way we'd see each other every day was if we live together."

"Live together?" Kim said after a silent moment, heart dropping with a thud she could almost hear. Jason said nothing, but she could feel the muscles in the arm next to her go tense.

"Yes! Isn't it great? We're moving in together as soon as we can find a place we can afford!" Kat exclaimed. She looked at them with bright and happy expectation.

"Yeah, that's great!" Jason echoed, a grin now on his face as he put out his hand to shake Tommy's.

"It's wonderful, Kat," Kim said. "Just wonderful!"

* * *

"_Yeah, wonderful," Kim echoed, wondering if her other self felt the same sharp ache of envy and loss._

"_But not to you," Shayla said, her eyes sympathetic. "And not to Jason. Jealousy is a terrible thing, isn't it? It eats you up from the inside like the sharp fangs of a wild beast."_

"_I thought you weren't human," Kim retorted. "How do you know anything about it?"_

"_One doesn't have to be human in order to understand. If it's any comfort, I think both you and Jason are handling it extremely well."_

"_Gee, thanks. Haven't we seen enough of this?"_

"_Since you don't like this part, let's fast forward another year or two." She smiled and waved a hand gracefully. "College is a lovely experience, but it's really a cross between an extension of childhood and a rehearsal for adulthood, don't you think? At any rate, it's now time to start growing up."_

* * *

"Many congratulations to you on your early graduation, Tommy, and on the upcoming commencement ceremonies of the rest of the group. While I wish I could be there in Angel Grove next June to see most of you in your caps and gowns, especially since I also missed your graduation from high school, my current studies and projects will undoubtedly not permit the time away. Sometimes I miss the good old days with the faster methods of transportation we had available. Best wishes, send pictures, and again congratulations. Your friend, Billy."

Jason folded the card he had just read aloud with a shrug and a smile, and handed it to Rocky to be passed around. "Good old Billy. Nice of him to send this to you, Tommy."

"I still think he could find the time to come to our graduation," Kim said. "Tommy'll be here, won't you? Even though you'll be in grad school then." She nodded in his direction.

"I'm only graduating six months early, not a whole year like Billy. And I didn't move across the country to go to M.I.T.," Tommy said, glancing at Kat, who looked away. "I'm sure Billy would have come if he could. Aisha, Zack, and Trini won't be there either, after all."

"Aisha's all the way in Africa and Trini's still in Europe. Not quite the same thing. At least Zack keeps in touch regularly." Their former Black Ranger would have his own graduation festivities to attend in Chicago, and no extra money for a flight back to California. She sighed fretfully. "I guess I just wish Billy was here. Wish all of them were here; be nice to have the old gang still together."

Rocky grinned. "Well, _I_ just wish Aisha and Trini were here - there's not enough girls at this party!"

"You and Adam will just have to make do with me," Tanya said, crossing her arms. "How horrible for you."

"Guess so," Rocky said unrepentantly. "Prepare to dance 'til you drop!" He jumped up from the sofa and grabbed her hand, heading to the middle of Tommy and Kat's small living room amid the laughter of the others.

"I guess Rocky would have liked to bring his latest girlfriend," Adam said quietly as he took one of the vacated places on the sofa.

"And Tanya would have liked to bring that sound engineer she's dating," Kat said. "But I'm glad we made this 'Rangers only'. We don't have to watch what we say."

"Yeah. Makes it almost like old times," Jason said.

Kim smiled, but the remark only brought home to her - again - the fact that the old times were gone forever. Zordon had been gone for years. The team that Tommy, Kat, Adam, and Tanya had turned their powers over to had been gone for years too. The Power had changed hands several times, and would continue to do so. It had left them far behind. Not only that, so many of her friends had moved on and away. It had started with Trini and Zack, who had not returned from Geneva with Jason. Then Aisha, now Billy.

At least the rest of them were still here - for now. Tanya was rooming with Kim in the dorm, but her budding singing career would probably take her to L.A. or Hollywood or New York someday soon. If Kat was serious about a career in dance she would have to travel. Tommy had been talking about field work for the degree in Paleontology he wanted. Adam and Rocky had stayed in the martial arts field, Rocky as a teacher because of his old back injury, and had been talking about opening a chain of dojos; how successful could they be confined to Angel Grove?

Jason was the only one who seemed solidly rooted here. Dependable Jason. Sometimes he seemed the best and most reliable part of her life now, even though their friendship was far from the sort of passionate romance she still dreamed of. She still occasionally caught him watching Kat a little too intently, just as her own eyes sometimes drifted to Tommy - they could understand each other; even if they rarely mentioned their frustrated desires it formed a bond between them.

And it was Tommy's voice that pulled her from her thoughts as Rocky and Tanya joined them again. "Listen up, guys," he said, and paused, reaching for Kat's hand and taking a deep breath. "Kat and I have both been doing a lot of thinking about the future, with me going into grad school and her getting out of college soon." He looked around at all of them, lingering for a moment on Kim and Jason. "I've been offered a job, working with a scientist named Anton Mercer on extracting dinosaur DNA from some fossils he discovered recently. It's a great opportunity; if things go well I can also continue my studies and get credit towards my degree, get my PhD early, and maybe have a permanent job after that." He looked around at all of them. "He wants me to start right away - next week."

"Bro, that sounds great," Jason said.

"Yeah, man, that's excellent!" Rocky exclaimed.

"The bad part is, the job's at Dr. Mercer's laboratory on an island near a town called Reefside," Tommy went on. "If everything works out it means I'll be going to Freemont University in Reefside, and I'll be living on the island, at least at first."

"But you won't be very far away," Adam said.

"Yeah, I'll be around to see my parents, and to see you guys of course." Tommy paused and again looked at Kat. "But it won't be the same."

"A lot of things won't be the same." Kat smiled brightly and held up her left hand. "A lot of things!"

Kim felt her heart squeeze as she saw the sparkle of a diamond on Kat's finger. The third left finger, meaning...

"You're _engaged_?" Tanya shrieked. "Get _out_! You're getting _married_?"

"Wow, congratulations again!" Rocky exclaimed.

"That's great, man," Adam chimed in less noisily.

Kim wasn't quite sure what she was feeling as she forced a grin, said, "That's wonderful! I'm so happy for both of you!" and jumped up to give Kat a hug and Tommy a peck on the cheek.

"Yeah, congratulations," Jason said as he leaned over to shake Tommy's hand. "When's the big day?"

"Since we decided Kat's going to join me in Reefside as soon as she's finished college we thought we'd get officially engaged now, but we haven't set a date - it kind of depends on how this job works out and whether Kat can find work in Reefside." He exchanged a glance with his fiancée.

Jason abruptly got to his feet. "In that case, I'd better take this opportunity for a dance with one of my favorite Pink Rangers while she's still single. Kat?" He held out his hand, and after a moment's hesitation Kat took it and let him pull her up and into the middle of the room.

As Kim was wondering whether to give Tommy the same invitation, he got up, grabbed an empty snack tray, and headed for the kitchen. She watched him go, again wondering what to do, but she badly wanted to talk to him and this might be the best opportunity.

Tommy was tearing open a bag of chips as Kim walked into the kitchen. She stopped, watching. A slight frown was the only acknowledgment of her presence as he poured the chips onto the tray and then opened the refrigerator and pulled out a fresh bowl of dip. Finally... "Enjoying the party?" he asked.

"Very much. Can I help with anything?"

"You think they like the cheese dip more, or the sour cream?"

"The salsa, actually. If you have any more."

"Sure." He opened the refrigerator again and reached inside. "Always prepared, that's Kat."

"Tommy..."

His shoulders seems to tense slightly, but he didn't look up from the container of dip. "Yes?"

What could she say, really? 'Don't leave, don't marry Kat...' Kim knew she had no claim on him, and it wasn't even that she was jealous or wanted him back - although she couldn't deny that was a factor. She had accepted that it was over with Tommy long ago. Still, it hurt to realize he was going on to a new life that didn't include her, even as a friend. But they all had to make their own lives now, didn't they?

"I just wanted to say that I'm really happy for you and Kat. I - I wish both of you the best in the world."

Tommy turned to look at her, a warm smile brightening his face. "Thanks, Kim. That's really nice of you to say."

"I mean it," she responded, a little defensively.

"I know you do." Tommy stepped forward and wrapped her in a hug. "And I hope you know I wish the best for you, too."

"Thanks." Kim let her cheek rest against his broad chest. "It's going to be hard to say goodbye, is all."

"Hard for all of us." His arms tightened for a moment before letting go. He moved back far enough to curl a finger under her chin and tilt her face up. "So let's not say goodbye. Maybe we won't be living in the same city anymore, but we'll still be close. Right?"

"Right." Kim returned his smile, this time from her heart.

* * *

Two hours later, Kim was so wrapped up in her own thoughts and the haze of a few too many glasses of wine as she and Jason left for the short walk back to the dorms, that she didn't question and barely noticed his silence. As always, he was a reassuring and undemanding presence at her side, his fingers brushing hers and then clasping them in silent support, his profile traced in unsmiling moonlight when she happened to glance his way. Briefly she wondered what he was thinking.

For herself - had she been truthful with Tommy? Was she truly happy for him and Kat? She should be. She had buried any remaining thoughts of herself and Tommy years ago, covered deep by her friendship with Kat and her genuine wish for both of them to be happy. Still, it wasn't always easy to see that happiness with her own eyes. More than once she had wanted to put some distance between herself and them, to - to get away, to put Tommy behind her and move on. But that was out of the question. They were both her friends, her closest friends, and she couldn't let such a petty thing as jealousy come between them. And there was Jason - he and Tommy were like brothers, she couldn't possibly try to keep them apart, it wouldn't be fair or right. So she had stayed, and spent her free time with them, and suppressed the occasional nagging feeling that she'd let herself be trapped into a situation that kept her feelings for Tommy alive long after they should have faded into the past. At least that would end now, although the realization filled her with sadness, loss, and something like fear at the thought of no longer having him nearby.

It wasn't even that she was so terribly jealous - in her most honest moments Kim had to admit that a large part of it was hurt pride, and loneliness - or fear of loneliness - Tommy didn't want her anymore, and Wyatt... She had Jason, but their relationship had never crossed the line somewhere between friendship and the giddy heights of romantic passion, the love, she had felt for both of her former boyfriends.

They stopped when they reached the short walkway between the dormitory building Kim lived in and the one Jason lived in. Kim turned to face him, expecting a murmured goodnight, a quick kiss on the cheek, maybe plans to meet for breakfast or lunch in the cafeteria. Instead...

Jason let go of her hand and bent to kiss her on the lips, tentatively at first, then when she didn't move away his powerful arms pulled her close and pressed her against his body, his mouth again descending on hers in a kiss so unexpectedly passionate it took her breath away. He raised his head and waited, as if asking permission, and this time it was she who pulled him into another, longer kiss.

When their lips parted again he said softly, "My roommate's away for the weekend. Kim... do you want to come up?"

She knew what he was asking, and looked up at his shadowed face in momentary indecision. Her first thought was: 'Why not?' But that wasn't fair. She should want this, really want it beyond any question of loneliness or hurt or jealousy or simply too much to drink. But Jason was a sweet guy, and she did love him, in a way, and he had been so good to her, and he wanted to, and at this moment a big part of her also wanted to, and shouldn't that be enough? The unwanted thought of Tommy and Kat and what they were probably doing right now flashed through her mind, and before she had made a conscious decision she was saying, "Yes, I'd like that."

* * *

"_Ah, moonlight and romance," Shayla sighed, her hands clasped to her bosom. "To be young and in love... and human, of course."_

"_Hah." Kim crossed her arms as her counterpart disappeared inside Jason's dorm building. "This is a big mistake, just like Billy, you wait and see." _

"_Not just like Billy, there are always new mistakes to make. But give it a chance. Where's your faith in the power of true love?"_

"_True love, hah," Kim muttered, and saw Shayla smile in that sweet way that had already become irritating._

"_Onward," Shayla said. "Interesting times lie in the weeks ahead."_

"_I don't think I like the sound of that." Kim stared at her suspiciously._

_Shayla waved her hand, and again their surroundings blurred and changed. Kim saw herself standing outside one of the college buildings. It was bright day now, the sun slanting from the east and a breeze stirring Kim's hair, but she seemed oblivious of anything except whatever thoughts had her face downturned, her lips trembling, and her arms clasping a textbook tightly against her chest._

* * *

Kim could feel the eyes on her as she stood waiting for Jason in front of the building where she knew he had a morning class. No, just the usual quick glances and a few friendly smiles and waves from acquaintances, but it was hard to shake off the paranoid conviction that they could all see right through her, see what she was hiding. Her secret. Well, it wouldn't be her secret alone for too much longer.

"Kim?" She looked up to find Jason in front of her, his smile tinged with curiosity and a shade of concern. "Is something wrong?"

Of course he knew something was wrong, not just from her face but from the fact she had come looking for him. After their one night together - things hadn't been the same between them. Oh, they'd tried - for the last several weeks they had made an effort to see each other just as often, to pretend that nothing had happened. But it had felt like an effort; both of them had skipped some of their meals together in the cafeteria, and the evenings of studying and talking and just hanging out had started to seem too uncomfortable when they involved long hours alone together in one or the other of their dorm rooms, each wondering what the other was thinking and remembering. She thought their friendship would survive - or at least she had until a few days ago. Until the additional bombshell she was about to drop on their relationship.

"I have to talk to you." Kim turned and started for the path, heading in the direction that seemed least crowded with other students.

"Sure." Jason followed her as she silently led him to the small grove of trees in mid-campus, and found a bench warmed by the winter sunlight. "Something _is_ wrong," he observed as they sat. "What's the problem? What can I do?"

_You've done enough._ Kim barely bit back the retort. It wasn't Jason's fault. Of course, that left her with only herself to blame. No, it was no one's fault. So why did she feel so guilty, and so angry?

"Jason..." she started. "Jason, I have to tell you something."

"Okay." He watched her for a moment, brows drawing together as his expression became serious, and prompted, "Go on. You can tell me."

"Jason... Wow, there's no easy way to say it." Kim drew in a breath and let it out. "I'm pregnant."

"Pregnant," Jason said after a long pause, his voice toneless and his face carefully blank after the first blink of shock. "Are you sure?"

"I did the test six times, on three different days. I'm sure."

"Is it... is it mine?"

"Of course it's yours! How many guys do you think I'm-" Kim cut herself off.

He stared at her for a few seconds and then leaned his elbows heavily on his knees, staring down at the ground. "Sorry. It's just... How? We were being careful."

"Not careful enough, obviously. Nothing works a hundred percent, and we'd both been drinking." She sighed. "Look, how it happened doesn't matter anymore. It happened, and I thought you should know."

"Okay." Jason looked a shade paler as he looked up at her face again. "Have you decided - you know - what you're going to do about it? Whether you're going to have it, or..." He swallowed. "There are alternatives."

Kim closed her eyes. "I've been thinking about it. It makes my head ache, how much I've been thinking about it. I've considered abortion, but... I don't know; I just don't know if I can do that."

"I see."

"I don't know if I can _have_ a baby, either. Maybe I could give it up for adoption... I guess..." She looked at Jason anxiously. "What do you think I should do?"

"Me?" Jason straightened, dismay written across his face. "I don't know. I mean, this is up to you. Whatever you want to do, do it; it's your choice."

"It's your baby too!" Kim heard her voice rising, and made an effort to calm herself and lower it. "This is just as much your responsibility as mine. I need you to help me."

"Give me a chance to think, Kim." Jason got to his feet and looked down at her, his face shadowed by the sun and unreadable. "Look, I have a class soon. I have to go."

"Jason, wait!"

"Later. We'll talk later." He backed away from her, and reliable, dependable Jason turned and started off at a walk so fast it threatened to become a run.

"You know what? Don't bother!" Angry, heartsick, and above all scared, Kim jumped up, grabbed her book, and headed for her room as fast as she could.

* * *

"_How could this happen?" Kim muttered. "It was just one time."_

"_Technically it was two times." Shayla smirked as Kim glared at her. "And once is enough." _

"_You're making awfully light of the situation."_

"_Things have a way of working out. Let's watch."_

* * *

"What am I going to do?" Kim asked with a look up at Tanya's sympathetic face, before she wiped away tears for what felt like the hundredth time.

It had taken only a glance at Kim's reddened, puffy eyes for her friend and roommate to demand to know what was wrong. Kim hadn't been sure if she was grateful or not as she had blurted out her news for the second time that morning. But now, as Tanya sat next to her on her narrow bed and squeezed her shoulders with a reassuring arm, she knew this was much better than trying to keep it inside for any longer.

"First off, you're going to have to decide - soon - whether to have this baby."

"I just don't _know_, Tanya. I'm not ready to have a baby. I want to finish college, and get a job, and have a home and enough money to raise a child. Not to mention I'd rather have a husband first. But - I don't know if I can go through with an abortion. I keep thinking about how having a kid would ruin my life, but then I start thinking about what this baby would look like, and be like, and whether this is the only chance I'll have to be a mother. You know?"

"Yeah." Tanya hesitated a moment. "It's not going to be easy, either way."

"I never thought Jason, of all people, would let me down like that. He was no help at all."

"What do you want him to do? Marry you?"

"I-" Kim stopped. What _had_ she wanted from Jason? Not marriage, she realized; she hadn't thought much about the more practical aspects yet. Reassurance? Or someone to take the burden of all this off her own shoulders, the way he had always seemed to be there to help her through the bad times? "I guess - just some support. Some advice. It's his baby too."

"Kim..." Tanya's arm around her tightened a little. "When you saw that test result reading positive, what was your first reaction?"

"My first reaction?" Kim gave a damp snort of laughter. "Total shock. Thought it had to be wrong. I did the test again, and then again the next day, and the next. Couldn't believe it."

"Well, wouldn't Jason have been in shock too? Even more, maybe. You suspected you were pregnant before the test, after all. He just got it dropped on him out of nowhere."

Kim shrugged. "I guess. Still, he could have taken it better."

"I'm sure he could have, but last time I looked our former fearless leader wasn't quite perfect. Give him time." Tanya hugged her for a moment. "Jason will come through for you. And if he doesn't... I'll personally kick his butt."

* * *

It took until the next day, but when Kim saw Jason waiting outside her dorm building door in the morning it didn't surprise her at all. She stopped, pressed her books to her chest with crossed arms, and tried not to let her smile look too nervous.

"Hey, Kim." Jason came to her side and they started to walk slowly towards the academic complex where Kim's class was.

"Hi." She shot a self-conscious glance up at his face.

"How have you been?"

"Okay. You?" As he shrugged, the situation suddenly struck her as funny. Kim tried to stifle a giggle.

"What?"

"You and me. We're acting like a couple of kids who just met, not like old friends." _Not like two people who spent a night together,_ she added silently. Funny how something as intimate as sex could leave you feeling like strangers.

"Yeah, you're right." He grinned that old warm and infectious grin. "Look, I'm sorry I didn't talk to you sooner."

"Don't be sorry. It's a lot to deal with, I know."

"Must be a lot harder for you." He scanned her with a concerned look. "Seriously, how have you been?"

"Okay. Fine. Tanya's been a big help. I've calmed down a little."

"Good." Jason hesitated. "Have you decided what you're going to do?"

Kim frowned slightly, trying to pick her words carefully. "Do you... have an opinion? Don't worry, I'm not asking you to make a decision for me, but this should involve you too."

"Kim... I really don't know what I want. I think about how a baby would complicate my life - our lives - and how hard it would be, but then I start wondering if this might be my only chance to be a father, and what the kid would be like, and what it would be like to have a son or a daughter."

Kim looked up at him again, startled. "That's exactly the kind of things I've been thinking!"

"Not too surprising, I guess. Anyway... as much as I take responsibility for this, in the end it's your decision. I don't want to try to push you in either direction."

"I guess I understand." Kim walked on a few more steps in silence, not realizing she had made any decisions until the words came out of her mouth. "I don't want an abortion. But I don't want to keep the baby either."

"Then we're going to have a lot more to talk about." Jason dropped a warm hand on her shoulder.

* * *

They had done a lot of talking over the next four months. Jason had shown no signs of regret at the situation after that first revelation, and in fact had been the one who insisted that she see a doctor regularly and take better care of herself. He'd always been a natural leader and protector, and now it seemed he might make a natural father. Too bad he wouldn't get the chance to be one with their child.

And her own regrets? Kim looked down and ran a hand over her now expanding stomach as she sat in the shade of a tree in the college square. Whatever lay ahead, she was sure there would be many times she'd wish she'd made a different decision, but also many when she'd be glad. Of course, that didn't explain why she still hadn't made any definite arrangements for adoption. Signing papers, meeting people anxious to take her baby - it all seemed too overwhelming, too... permanent. Choosing a couple to raise her child was something she just couldn't face yet. Maybe not ever. Maybe it would be better to leave it until after the birth, leave it to someone else to decide, an adoption agency with experience, much better than a scared 21-year-old who still felt more like a girl than a woman.

Was it second thoughts? Kim questioned herself. No, just reluctance to face the inevitable, especially as the baby became more and more real in her body and in her mind. She was sure of her decision, but there was no rush. A healthy newborn would be snatched up by some loving young couple in an instant.

"Is he kicking?" The voice came from behind her shoulder. Jason, who moved around the bench, bent to kiss her cheek, and sat beside her.

"Sorry, no. And why do you always assume it'll be a boy?" Kim smiled.

"If you'd let the doc tell us if it's a boy or a girl, I wouldn't have to guess." He pressed a hand to her belly, then looked up with a quick grin. "Hey, I felt something!"

"Probably gas." Kim rolled her eyes.

"Kim..." Jason sat back and turned to face her, his expression serious now. "I talked to my parents again."

She made a face. Telling both their sets of parents hadn't been easy. Her mother had wanted Kim to fly to France immediately to be under her watchful eye. Her father had obviously been shocked and dismayed by the idea of being a grandfather under these circumstances. Both had had unpleasant things to say about her decision to have the baby, and to give it up, after they had gotten over the fact of her being pregnant in the first place. Jason hadn't said much, but his tone had told her things had been equally difficult for him at home. It hadn't been easy telling their friends and former teammates either - Tanya had known from the beginning, of course, but they'd had to tell Kat, Rocky, and Adam. All of them had been supportive, but Kim couldn't help wondering what they were thinking behind those smiles. She found herself grateful for once that Tommy wasn't around.

"They said you could move in with them to wait for the baby to come," Jason continued.

"Really?" Kim tried not to show her reluctance. "I'd rather stay on campus until finals and graduation."

"My folks like you, Kim. They want to help out."

"Help out." Kim gave him a long look, which Jason avoided. "Or help me change my mind about adoption? They want me to keep it, don't they?"

"Yeah. You can't blame them; they want to know their grandchild."

Kim sighed. "My parents are pretty much saying the same thing."

"And you know what's funny?" Jason met her eyes this time, and took a deep breath. "I kind of agree with them."

"Excuse me?" Kim exclaimed after a stunned moment. "I thought you were fine with my decision! You're the one who said you'd back me up, whatever I decided to do, and now you're-"

"I'm still backing you up," Jason said steadily, reaching to take the hands she had raised and lower them back to her lap. " But I have to be honest with you, Kim. I'm not crazy about the idea of adoption, but I'm not trying to tell you what to do. I'm just - offering you some other options, I guess."

"What are you saying?"

Any hesitation Jason had shown before was gone now. "Well, if you change your mind and want to keep the baby, you can live at my folks' house for as long as you need. They're fine with that. I'll help take care of you and the baby; be a real father and everything. And, also..." He paused, again looking both nervous and determined. "If we keep the baby... Maybe we should get married, Kim."

Kim's eyes widened. "_What?_"

Jason rushed on. "I don't want to only see the kid on weekends or something; I want to help raise him. Or her. The best way to do all that is to get married, right?"

For a moment Kim actually found herself considering it. Jason was a good guy; she probably wouldn't do much better for a husband than him. Tommy and Wyatt were both long gone. Why not? It would mean security. For the baby, as well as for herself.

But as she looked into Jason's face, Kim knew she had to say no, and why. "I'm sorry," she said softly. "But we don't love each other. As friends, sure, but we're not _in_ love. Getting married would just be - well, it wouldn't feel right."

"But it would be practical. I want..."

"I don't want to get married just because it's practical." She tried to catch his eye as he looked away. "Or for security, or... or to be respectable. It wouldn't be fair to you either, Jason. You deserve someone who's in love with you." Kim tried a smile. "Thanks for the offer, really. And I'm sorry, I really am. Are we still good?"

Jason looked at her, seemed about to argue, and then sighed and took her hands again. "Sure. We're good."

* * *

"_Wow, I didn't see that coming at all," Kim murmured. "Jason looks like he's really disappointed."_

"_Do you think she should have accepted his proposal?"_

"_No. She was right about that. They don't love each other the way you should to get married, and certainly not the way you should to raise a child." Kim crossed her arms. "Besides... 'Maybe we should get married'? That wasn't a very romantic proposal."_

"_These aren't the most romantic circumstances. I think Jason is very sweet." Shayla waved a hand. "But why linger here? Much more dramatic events are on the way."_

* * *

It was over - at last. Kim clung to the thought as she walked off campus towards the apartment Tommy and Kat had shared until his departure for Anton Mercer's island, where she had moved in with Kat a few months ago. She had just finished her last final, and school was over. Normally she might have felt some sense of regret or loss at the end of her academic career, her college life, but all she felt at the moment was relief that the stress of studying and worrying about grades and papers and getting to class was over. Especially on a day like this, when her lower body seemed to weigh a couple of tons, it felt more like a kicking bowling ball inside her than a baby, the mild cramps her doctor assured her were harmless had become annoying and spread into a backache that refused to go away, and the late summer heat seemed intolerable even for this comparatively short walk.

The pregnancy would be over soon too, and that would be another relief. Kim had escaped many of the side-effects, suffering only mild morning sickness early on and no cravings at all, somewhat to her disappointment. But as it progressed the pressure on her stomach and bladder and the strain and awkwardness of the added weight of a belly that seemed to have grown to incredible proportions had become acutely uncomfortable. Less than three more weeks to put up with this, or that was what the doctor said.

Kim had lost credits due to her transfer from Florida to AGU and the trimester she'd missed at that time, enough to put her behind her friends despite a couple of summer sessions. Two additional summer courses gave her enough to graduate, and she had decided to go ahead with them despite her advanced pregnancy. Who knew when she'd have the free time again - but no, she was going to give up the baby, she'd have plenty of time. Kim frowned. Sometimes it was so hard to think logically about this. She'd finally contacted an adoption agency, forced herself to go to counseling sessions despite a dragging reluctance to face the realities of her decision, and declined to choose an adoptive family herself. Just have the baby, sign the papers, and it would be over and she could get on with her life.

She pressed a hand over her stomach as yet another cramp came and went, this one verging on outright painful. They had started the night before, probably the result of exam stress and a late night of studying. Then she'd made things worse with a midnight snack of cold pizza which had laid in her stomach like a pile of rocks. The exam, sitting in an overheated classroom for two hours without a break, certainly hadn't helped. For a moment she considered just taking a nap when she got home. But no, Jason and Kat would be waiting for her. It was a big day for Kat too; after spending the summer teaching at an Angel Grove dance academy she had finally found a job in Reefside and was making plans to join Tommy. Jason was taking them both out to dinner, to celebrate. Kim's stomach had been doing flip-flops all day and she'd only had appetite for a few bites of breakfast and lunch; she could use a good meal, if she could get it down. The pressure of school was off now, she could relax tonight and maybe the queasiness and general discomfort she was feeling would settle down.

With an effort, Kim climbed the steps up to the building walkway and her apartment door. It had been a practical arrangement for both of them for her to move in with Kat, since Tommy was gone and Tanya had graduated and moved out of the dorm, although Kim had felt uncomfortable at times at the knowledge that she was living in the same place where Tommy had lived - with Kat. Sighing with relief, she opened the door and stepped inside into the cooler air, not looking around until she had closed it behind her, dropped her bag on a nearby chair, and tried unsuccessfully to ease the dull pain in her lower back with a stretch. It was the soft murmur of voices that told her Kat and Jason were there, in the living room off the short hallway she was standing in. Kim started in that direction, wondering if they had heard her come in.

They were both standing, close together, Kat folded in the circle of Jason's arms, her blonde head bent against his shoulder and his dark one resting on it, both facing away. Kim stopped abruptly, rocked by a sharp pang of dismay. Jealousy? No, that was ridiculous. But Kat - she had taken Tommy, wasn't that enough? The resentful thought receded as Kim realized something was wrong. She heard a shaky breath, followed by a sob. Jason was saying something indistinct in a soothing tone, but his voice sounded shaken too. She caught the name 'Tommy'.

"What's wrong?" Kim asked, stepping into the living room.

Kat's face was blotchy and tearful as she turned. Jason looked pale. Neither answered her.

"What's wrong?" Kim repeated. "Is it Tommy? I heard..." She stopped at the stricken expression on Kat's face and the glance she exchanged with Jason. "Did something happen? Please tell me!"

"There was an accident on Dr. Mercer's island," Jason said finally. "An explosion. They don't know exactly what happened but it was pretty bad."

"Was Tommy there?" Kim felt breathless suddenly.

"Yes." Jason glanced at Kat again, then met Kim's eyes. "He's missing. They can't find him anywhere on the island. Some of the buildings are still on fire, and they're searching the wreckage for - searching, but..."

"But... oh my god, Tommy..."

"If anyone's a survivor, it's Tommy." Jason's words were hopeful, but the hard set of his mouth and the pinched look of his eyes said otherwise. Kat had turned her face away with another little sob. "Maybe he got out. He could be okay."

Kim swayed, suddenly lightheaded, and put out her hands in search of support that wasn't there.

"Kim, are you all right?" Kat asked, looking at her again.

"I'm... I'm..." Everything around her seemed to dim, as if something had cast a shadow over the room. Weakness gripped her and she could feel herself sinking, with no strength to stop it, no strength to even know what was happening.

"Catch her!" someone shouted.

Kim barely felt herself hit the floor as everything went blank and dark. She was dimly aware of hands grabbing her, arms lifting her against a strong body and lowering her onto a soft surface. Voices were talking in alarmed tones. But it was another cramp, sharper and more painful than before, that brought her back to awareness.

"Kim, are you okay?" Jason was asking anxiously as he bent over the couch where he had put her. Kat hovered behind his shoulder.

"I guess." Kim blinked and shook her head. "What happened?"

"You must have fainted," Kat said.

That brought it back. Tommy. Tears sprang into her eyes even as a sudden agitated movement from the baby followed by another sharp pain which she could no longer deny was a contraction made her clutch at her belly.

"What is it?" Jason asked, concern in his voice.

"After that fall, I think she should see a doctor," Kat said, a crease between her brows. She reached around Jason to press a hand on Kim's forehead. "Kim, how do you feel?"

"It hurts... the baby..." Kim looked up and saw them exchange another, almost panicked look as she said faintly, "I'm sorry, but I think I need to go to the hospital."

* * *

Kim lay quietly, propped against the pillows, her face turned to the window in the small hospital room where she was recovering. Daylight had brightened the sky, she didn't know how many hours ago. The blinds were open just enough for her to see the trees outside, branches swaying slightly in the breeze, and the occasional cloud scudding across her view. A movement drew her eyes down to where a tiny baby slept in her arms. Kim smiled, not without a pang. Despite her resolve not to see the baby, in the end she hadn't been able to resist. It would only be for a few more hours, maybe a day, she promised herself. Then at least she'd be able to remember her daughter's face.

They had told her the labor was unusually short for a first pregnancy, that the birth was quick and uncomplicated. Kim didn't believe it; for her it had been hours of pain and bright lights and people in white coats staring between her legs and telling her to push long after she had no strength left to push with. They had assured her that everything was fine despite her labor starting almost three weeks early, but she hadn't believed that either until she had heard the welcome sound of loud and insistent crying and seen the doctors and Jason smiling. It had been a joyful relief, but it also made everything suddenly so real and so final.

It was over and she should be happy. Instead she just felt empty. The baby would be gone as soon as she was discharged and could sign the adoption papers. And Tommy... would she ever see him again?

A soft knock on the door distracted her as the tears started again. Kim sniffled, wiped her eyes, and struggled to adjust herself and the baby again before calling, "Come in."

Jason leaned into the room and smiled tentatively when he saw her. "How are my girls?"

"This one is pooped. So is she, apparently," Kim said with a nod downward.

Jason came in and closed the door behind him. He pulled a chair close to the bed. "Kim, I have news."

"Tommy?" She felt dread - but no, Jason was grinning, his eyes were bright despite a sleepless night.

"Yeah, Tommy. He got out safely somehow. Must have jumped or been knocked into the ocean. He swam from the island all the way to the mainland. Passed out on the beach, and someone taking their dog for a run early this morning found him. He's still in the hospital, but he's going to be fine."

"Oh, thank God." Kim matched his grin. "I never knew he was such a good swimmer!"

"What a relief, huh?" Jason shifted his attention to his daughter, reaching a finger to stroke her cheek as he went on, "Kat's gone to the airport to fly to Reefside. She said to say she's sorry she had to leave without seeing the baby. And I talked to Tommy for just a minute and gave him the news. He's glad everything turned out okay."

"Yeah. Yeah, I guess it did." Looking at her child again only brought back the empty feeling. Involuntarily she tightened her grip a little.

"Kim..." Jason glanced at her quickly and then back at the baby. "Are you sure about this? About adoption?"

"I guess so." Kim realized too late how unsure that sounded.

"Because if you're not... I want to keep her, Kim. I've felt that way almost since you told me you were pregnant. And now," he smiled gently, "I took one look and fell in love with her. I know I promised not to try to push you into anything, but I want to keep her."

Kim only looked down, the urge to say that was what she wanted too so overwhelming that she couldn't speak. She'd promised herself she wouldn't let this happen; she wouldn't let her emotions take over.

"Give her to me and my parents," Jason was saying. "You can still pick the adoptive family, so pick us. They want her too. You can leave if you want, and go on with your life, and you'll know she's in good hands. You could see her any time you want. Or not. Or - or you could stay, and with me there, and my folks, to take care of the baby, it wouldn't be so difficult. You could have a job, go to graduate school, whatever."

"I don't know," Kim managed to say. "I don't know what to do."

Jason looked encouraged. "Will you think about it?"

"Yes. I'll think about it." She didn't look up from her daughter's little face.

"And..." Jason hesitated. "If you decide to keep her, and stay, would you think about marrying me?"

That brought Kim's eyes up to his. "Marry you? We talked about that before."

"We have a baby to consider now. And I do love you, Kim, and I think you love me too. Maybe it's not the romantic kind you want, but it's still love."

"I'm sorry, but it's not enough. What I want from marriage is - is the fireworks and silk sheets kind of love. Romance. Passion. I need to have that."

Jason leaned closer, hands clasped together. "Marriage should be about affection and respect and - and supporting each other, too. About family. We've been friends for a long time. We know each other so well, and we depend on each other. Think about it." Again he touched his sleeping daughter's cheek lightly. "Give it a chance, Kim. Give _us_ a chance. Have faith in our friendship, and hope for the future."

"Faith, and hope," Kim echoed softly, also looking at the baby's face.

* * *

_"So?" Kim exclaimed as the scene wavered and faded into grey mist, and was not replaced. "What's going to happen? Will she keep the baby? Will she marry Jason?"_

_"So curious about a relationship you thought was nothing but a mistake," Shayla said with a smug expression._

_"Yeah, well, I still want to know what happens."_

_"All right. Yes, to both questions. Do you want to see the problems any marriage in such circumstances would face? The financial difficulties, arguments, trouble with the in-laws, the struggle to be independent and move into their own home, searching for jobs, the setbacks, the start of Jason's career in politics and all the sacrifices for both of them to make that happen..." Shayla waved a hand as dim scenes of angry, unhappy, or worried faces flashed by too quickly to follow, with the echoes of raised voices and a baby crying. "Or maybe the happy moments? Plenty of those, too." A dizzying series of images whirled around them, many of a little girl sitting in front of a birthday cake that acquired more candles with each change of scene, surrounded by Kim, Jason, and sometimes his parents, sometimes one of hers. Then she was a not-so-little girl, and finally a young woman. "But you want to know how everything turns out. Maybe we should just cut to an event I think you'll find interesting."_

* * *

"Just one more, Mom! Right there, looking at each other. Put your arm around her, Dad. Oh, that's nice." The camera snapped. "And now, why don't you come away from the tables and pretend like you're dancing..."

"Faith Hope Scott, you've already taken a few dozen pictures. I think that's enough for now," Kim exclaimed, laughing. "Don't you think so, Jason?"

"Considering we're going to have to pose for the newspaper and magazine photographers, not to mention the TV cameras, I definitely think so," her husband agreed with a grin. He stepped forward and dropped a kiss on Faith's cheek. "Sorry, honey."

"No problem, I'll get more during the party." Faith grinned back. It was her smile that most resembled Jason, Kim reflected, not for the first time. That and her very dark hair and eyes. The nose and petite build were all Kim, along with a fair amount of gymnastic talent. She liked to think their daughter's kind heart, quick mind, and outgoing personality came from both of them.

"I want plenty of pics," Faith went on. "It's a double occasion, after all. Not every day you guys have an anniversary! And of course, Dad being inaugurated is pretty cool too. Right, Mr. Governor?"

"Pretty cool." Jason chuckled.

"And as my first anniversary present to you..." Faith led them to one of the buffet tables and with a flourish lifted a large cake cover to reveal an elaborately decorated three-tier cake, iced in white with small pink rosettes. The words 'Happy 25th Anniversary' were spelled out on the top layer. "Have to admit I didn't bake it myself, but I designed the decorations."

"It's beautiful, honey," Kim said, hugging her daughter. "Thank you so much."

* * *

"It really is beautiful," Kim said to Jason more softly after Faith had trotted off on her self-appointed rounds as unofficial party hostess. "But I kind of wish she hadn't put which anniversary it is right on the cake."

"It's public knowledge when we got married and when Faith was born." Jason squeezed her shoulder. "The press never made much of it; no reason they'd say anything now."

"Still, I don't like the reminder. At least Faith doesn't know all the messy details."

"Our daughter is pretty smart; I'll bet she's guessed most of it."

"But not all." Not the fact that she'd almost been given up for adoption. Not Kim's struggles with that decision, not the constant worries about money in the early years, the guilt at asking Jason's parents to do so much, the doubts and what-ifs and the nights of tears shed in silence so she wouldn't wake Jason or the baby. Most of all, not the fact that they had married only because of Faith, although the marriage had grown well beyond parenthood.

Maybe sensing the direction of her thoughts, Jason took her hand. "Come on, our public awaits. We have to spend some time mingling. I wonder if the others are here yet?"

"Right - can't wait to see the gang again!"

They left the kitchen of the sizable house just outside Sacramento they had chosen to live in during the term Jason had so recently won as Governor of California and walked out to the vast and beautiful back lawn where the party was being held. Almost immediately Kim spotted Tommy's tall form in a group around the piano Faith had had set up on the patio at the back of the house, near the outdoor bar, Kat standing next to him. Kim half expected the old familiar twinge of jealousy, but felt no more than an idle moment of wondering what it might be like to be the woman at his side. There was Rocky with the latest in his series of girlfriends, and Adam, and Tanya. Her eyes scanned the crowd, hesitating on a face that seemed hauntingly familiar, but a moment later she lost sight of him. It couldn't be, anyway; what would he be doing here?

"Look, Billy made it!" Jason said, nudging her and pointing. Sure enough, she recognized her old friend near the others, deep in conversation with a brunette who matched the pictures she'd seen over the years of him with his wife. She was a mathematician, Kim remembered, almost as brilliant as Billy.

"Look who's at the piano!" she replied, smiling as she watched Skull play a few notes before saying something that made Tanya laugh. Skull had made a modest but successful career out of his music both alone and in a succession of bands, and they had been happy to fly him out to do a little light entertaining along with simply being at the party. "Let's go say hello."

"In a minute." Jason was looking upwards. Kim looked up too, just in time to catch the flash and sparkling trails of the beginning of the fireworks that had been arranged to kick off the evening, followed by banging explosions that made her cover her ears even as she laughed with delight at the bursts of light and color overhead.

"After this - don't say I never gave you fireworks," Jason said between explosions after a few minutes. He grinned down at her.

"No, I can't say that." She considered him with a smile, and thought of silk sheets with only the smallest twinge of regret.

* * *

"They seem happy," Shayla said in a neutral tone.

"Yes, they do. And they have a wonderful daughter," Kim said, watching as Faith appeared from the crowd and joined her parents. She frowned slightly. "You know, she looks a lot like Astrid, from the last - whatever it was, when I was with Billy."

"It's not surprising. They have the same mother."

"Yeah, but it's more than that. They don't look exactly alike, but somehow they seem the same." Kim's frown deepened. "I can't put my finger on it."

"Some people are meant to be," Shayla said enigmatically. "What did you think of this future?"

"Well... things turned out okay, but..." Kim waved a hand at her other self. "I agree with what she said before. I want the fireworks and silk sheets kind of love. What she has with Jason is great, but I want more. I want all that passion and romance she was talking about."

"Very well," Shayla said. "You want passion, let's see some passion! And off we go!" She gestured, the California evening lit by fireworks faded, and was replaced by the light of a sunny winter morning. They were standing on the sidewalk outside the Juice Bar again, watching a terribly familiar petite young woman approach.

"Oh no," Kim gasped. "Not again!"

_To be continued..._


End file.
